Fairy Tail's Toy Story
by TheSavageMan100
Summary: The first of Fairy Tail's Pixar Parody Series, based on Toy Story. Natsu Dragneel's title as Ken Hirugashi's favorite toy is in jeapordy when a space toy named Gray Fullbuster shows up. Accidentally whisked away from home and into the clutches of a neighborhood bully, Natsu and Gray must put aside their bitter rivalry and work together as a team if they are to escape.
1. You've Got a Friend in Me

**Author's Note:  
** _Hey howdy hey, folks! TheSavageMan100 is back! Just a whole bunch of days away from the end of the summer, and I've officially begun work on the first of Fairy Tail's Pixar Parodies, Fairy Tail's Toy Story! Just so you know, Pixar Animation is one of the various companies purchased by Disney in its heyday. It's well-known for making incredible, heartwarming movies like Up, Finding Nemo, Monsters, Inc., The Incredibles, Inside Out, and many, many more. The first story I'm going to present to you is based on the first Toy Story. I remember the Toy Story franchise as one of my all-time favorite movies, the very first computer-animated movie, and the one film that started it all. Anyways, let's go to the summary!_

 _When a flashy new Lamia Scale Space Ranger action figure named Gray Fullbuster enters the world of a pull-string Dragon Slayer named Natsu Dragneel, it sparks an outrageously funny tiff between toys. Now, Natsu's top spot as the favorite toy of his owner Ken Hirugashi is in jeopardy… and soon so are the lives of Natsu and Gray! Accidentally whisked away from home and into the clutches of a neighborhood bully, these two squabbling rivals must work together as a team if they are to escape. With toy box pals Wendy Marvell the Sky Priestess, Gajeel Redfox, Erza Scarlet, and Natsu's long-lost girlfriend Lucy Heartfilia ready to lend a hand, Natsu and Gray unite in friendship for a grand adventure home._

 _Oh, and one more thing! The setting takes place in modern-day Japan, considering Japan is the birthplace of the Fairy Tail manga. The humans playing with the toys are completely OC, like the aforementioned Ken Hirugashi. Another thing, Lucy will NOT be Bo Peep, instead she'll be given an extra, super-important role in the story. Instead, the role of Bo Peep will be passed on to Mirajane. You'll find out why soon enough._

 **DISCLAIMER:** All rights belong to Disney, Hiro Mashima, A-1 Pictures, and Bridge. Please support the official release.

* * *

Our story begins in a town rising from the desert sands, houses and buildings of wood and stone sporting a few stories high. Strangely, not a single soul was seen outside. The streets were empty. The vibrancy remained quiet. The only noises heard were the whistles of the wind, and the fluttering of a wanted poster depicting the town's most dangerous criminal, based on eye-witness descriptions.

The silence was broken by a loud explosion, and then screams. The noises came from the local bank, which had been raided by the aforementioned criminal. He was a muscular man with long spiky hair dressed in a black sleeveless tunic with studded edges, brown pants, black boots, gloves, a wing-like ornament, and a black scarf around his neck. His most notable feature was the iron demon mask he wore around his face. His name was Gajeel Redfox.

Holding hostage hundreds of innocent civilians, Gajeel transformed his arm into a large spiked sword of iron and swung it around threateningly. He demanded, "Alright, you dumb bozos, this is a stick-up! Nobody move!" He then pointed his sword-transformed arm to the bank clerk, "Now, empty that safe!"

The bank clerk in question was Happy, a blue Exceed with big black eyes, pink ears, and a green pouch tied to his back. The safe Gajeel referred to was actually a giant piggy bank standing behind him. Happy shivered, "T-T-T-The safe?"

Gajeel cackled, "That's right, kitty cat clerk. Empty the piggy bank, every single coin, and don't do anything stupid."

Happy just stood there, visibly shaken by the robber's threat. He didn't move a muscle, yet his body showed signs of trembling, and the tears flowed down his fur.

"Oh, not movin', eh?" Gajeel smirked at the Exceed's brave yet futile attempt to guard the safe. " **Iron Dragon's Sword!** " He swung his iron sword arm, destroying the large piggy bank and Happy with it. The impact shattered the piggy bank and Happy's body into pieces, and the citizens gasped at the grotesque feat they've witnessed. With the deed done, Gajeel moved away the remains, his eyes flashing on the main prize.

Laughing greedily, the robber found what he was looking for: a stash of giant coins made out of solid gold. "Ha-ha-ha! Golden Coins, the rarest currency in the whole world! This is gonna be a major haul!" He picked up one Golden Coin from the floor and observed it, "I'm gonna sell 'em to them entrepreneurs, charge a fortune, and I'll be filthy stinkin' rich! I'm talkin' big money! Money, money, money!" He then exchanged a few kisses on the coin.

"Stop it! Stop it, you mean iron demon!" the loud protest came from a 19-year old girl with long white hair and dressed in a long black dress. Her name was Mirajane Strauss. "The Golden Coins are the symbol of the town! You can't take them away from us!"

"Shut up, Mirajane, or your brother and sister are gonna get run over!" Gajeel threatened. He motioned his **Iron Dragon's Sword** to a 17-year old girl wearing a dark red dress paired with a white collar and bow, pale pink fabrics around her arms, gold rings above her elbows, tall black socks, and brown shoes. Her name was Lisanna Strauss, Mirajane's younger sister. Next to Lisanna was an 18-year old tall and muscular man wearing an outfit reminiscent of a Japanese high-school student. His name was Elfman Strauss, Mirajane's younger brother.

"Help, Mira! Please help us!" Lisanna whimpered.

"Don't worry, Lisanna! I'll protect you!" Elfman tightly embraced Lisanna. "A real man knows no fear!"

"No!" Mirajane screamed. "Not my brother and sister! Somebody do something! Someone, anyone! Please help us!"

And then, as if to answer the citizens' prayers, a 17-year old man with spiked salmon hair jumped onto the scene. He wore a black one-sleeved waistcoat, white knee-length trousers, a scarf adorned with dragon scales, and sandals. His name was Natsu Dragneel. Upon entering the bank, the large ring attached to the center of his back was pulled by an invisible force, revealing a long pull-string. By the time the string was pulled, an invisible voice resonated from Natsu's chest, as if a voice box was inside him. "Reach for the sky!"

"Oh, no! Natsu Dragneel! The Salamander!" Gajeel exclaimed. He recognized the salmon-haired boy as the hero of the town, best known for the astronomical number of criminals he brought to justice. He was mostly feared by the criminal underworld, and no one ever escaped from him.

With a smirk, Natsu slammed his right open palm with his left fist, the hands suddenly igniting with fire. He announced, "I'm here to stop you from robbing our treasured Golden Coins, Black Steel Gajeel." Raising a clenched burning fist, Natsu threw a fireball which knocked the iron demon mask off. It revealed Gajeel's face, which was studded with metal dots around his eyebrows.

"D'oh!" Gajeel cringed at Natsu revealing his true identity. "How'd you know it was me?"

Natsu explained, pointing at his nose, "I'm a Dragon Slayer. My nose can pick up any scent I'm familiar with. My sense of smell is as strong as iron." He added with a laugh, "Yours isn't." He then resumed the topic, "So, you gonna come quietly, or do you want me to melt that iron face of yours?"

Gajeel scoffed, "You can't touch me, Salamander! I've brought my henchwoman Titania, and she's got heavy-duty armor!" On cue, a 19-year old crimson-haired woman dressed in armor named Erza Scarlet appeared by his side.

"I am bound by my honor to protect you, Master Gajeel. As long as I draw breath, I'll never lose to the likes of him! **Requip!** " In response, Erza's armor broke itself apart and reassembled into the Adamantine Armor, capable of repelling the strongest of attacks. Standing in front of Natsu, Erza grasped the two large shields attached to the back of her armor and assimilated them into one large shield, generating a force field around both her and Gajeel. "I've requipped into my Adamantine Armor, with a built-in, indestructible Adamantine Shield!" For a moment, it appeared that the notorious criminal was well protected.

Natsu countered, "Well, I've brought my Sky Priestess, who destroys Adamantine Armor!" On cue, a 12-year old girl appeared alongside him. She had long dark blue hair tied in two ponytails, and she wore a white dress with white sleeves wrapped below her shoulders, a red bowtie, a red sash tied to her hips, white long stockings, and red petit boots. Her name was Wendy Marvell.

"By the power of Grandeeney and the spirits of heaven, my wind shall destroy the adamantine in your armor!" Wendy said bravely. She waved her hand in a circular motion and swung it, summoning a powerful gust of wind that collided with Erza's Adamantine Shield. As a result, the shield and the whole armor shattered into a million pieces, and Erza was left in a white sleeveless dress and a skirt.

"Nooooooo! Impossible! My armor was supposed to be invincible!" Erza exclaimed. With a high-pitched scream, she fainted unconsciously, the loss of her armor taking its toll on her.

"Titania, get up! You gotta fight!" Gajeel shouted at Erza. "You call yourself my number one henchwoman?!"

Natsu turned to Wendy and brushed her head with a smile, "Thanks, Wendy. You're a big help."

Wendy replied with a giggle, "Helping others is what I do best, Natsu. After all, I'm the pillar that holds hope for everyone."

 **A few minutes later…**

The criminal Gajeel Redfox was thrown in prison, which strangely resembled a baby crib hundreds of stories high. A cardboard sign was taped to the bars with the word "JAIL" written in crayon. Natsu stated, "You got yourself a free lifetime pass to jail, Gajeel. Say goodbye to the wife and tater-tots."

Just then, a 50-foot baby crawled over and picked Gajeel up. She sucked on the helpless criminal's nose, and then proceeded to pound him repeatedly against the rail of her crib.

As it turned out, the whole bank robbery scenario was actually a reenactment created by Ken Hirugashi, a 6-year old boy from modern day Japan with a passion for toys. Living with his mother and 1-year old sister Maka in the rural town of Inaba, Ken had many toys to play with, from dolls to preschool toys to action figures, and they had wonderful adventures in the world of imagination. The toys were the actors, and the atmosphere was the setting. But of all the toys in his collection, Ken's very best and most favorite was Natsu Dragneel.

With another day of Ken's playtime executed timely and perfectly, Ken, wearing a scarf adorned with dragon scales himself, picked up Natsu from the floor. "You saved the day again, Natsu," he said, pulling Natsu's pull-string.

"You're my favorite pal," Natsu's voice box spoke, as a song began to play.

 ** _You've got a friend in me  
You've got a friend in me_**

Ken turned around the boxes, drawn up in crayon to look like the miniature town Natsu and the other toys were played on, to reveal cows drawn on the other side. He grabbed a jump rope and pretended that Natsu was lassoing the cattle. "C'mon, let's wrangle up the cattle." Eventually, the young boy used the jump rope to catch one of the boxes.

 ** _When the road looks rough ahead  
And you're miles and miles from your nice, warm bed_**

Ken then placed Natsu on top of a RC (remote control) car with two round eyes named Fireball Dragion (Dragion for short).

 ** _Just remember what your old pal said  
Boy, you've got a friend in me_**

Operated by Ken using a remote control, Dragion moved Natsu around, herding the remaining "cow" boxes under Maka's crib. "Yee-haw!" Ken cheered.

 ** _Yeah, you've got a friend in me_**

Ken picked Natsu up, giving a hi-five to the toy. "Hey there, cowboy."

The scene switched to Natsu, who appeared to be going through a wild desert, but in reality, he rode on top of Ken's back.

 ** _Some other folks might be a little bit smarter than I am  
Bigger and strong too  
Maybe_**

Ken placed Natsu on top of the stairwell banister, allowing the doll to slide downstairs. Ken raced ahead and caught him at the bottom. The boy smiled as he hugged his favorite toy, a living reminder of the strong bond they shared.

 ** _But none of them will ever love you the way I do  
It's me and you, boy_**

Ken and Natsu fell onto a reclining chair and spun themselves around and around.

 ** _And as the years go by  
Our friendship will never die_**

Seconds later, the chair slowed down.

 ** _You're gonna see it's our destiny_**

Next, Ken set Natsu on top of the reclining chair's foot rest.

 ** _You've got a friend in me_**

The boy pulled the lever, and the foot rest launched him high into the air like a catapult. Ken shouted happily, "Alright!"

 ** _Yeah, you've got a friend in me_**

The Dragon Slayer doll was flung across the room to the edge of the sofa. Ken cheered, "Score!"

 ** _You've got a friend in me_**

Natsu lay limp on the sofa as Ken's mother, Mrs. Hirugashi, came into the living room with boxes in her hands. Smiling in anticipation, Ken went over to his mother to oversee the preparations for his birthday party. He was turning seven next week, and Mrs. Hirugashi originally intended to host the party at the exact day of her son's birth, but considering that the Hirugashi family was moving to a new home in a couple of days, she decided to host the party today. Mrs. Hirugashi had just finished decorating the area with streamers and balloons. A banner was draped across the archway, which read: "Happy Birthday, Ken."

"Wow, cool!" Ken remarked.

"So, what do you think?" Mrs. Hirugashi asked.

"Oh, this looks great, Mom," Ken smiled.

"I figured you'd like it, birthday boy," Mrs. Hirugashi laughed.

"Just like the cool stuff at the Inaba Junes Store. I asked for it, right?" Ken asked eagerly. Meanwhile, Natsu's frozen face stared in the direction of the birthday celebrations. "Can we leave this up 'til we move?"

"Sure, why not? Anything for you," Mrs. Hirugashi agreed.

"Yeah!" Ken bounced up and down like the excitable bundle of energy he was. He simply can't wait for the presents.

"Now go get Maka," Mrs. Hirugashi suggested. "Your friends are gonna be here any minute."

"Okay," Ken nodded, and he picked up Natsu from the couch. "It's party time, Natsu! **YEE-HAH!** " He ran upstairs with the doll in his hand and re-entered his room. Maka was still banging Gajeel wildly against her crib railing. Ken, on the other hand, was amused of his little sister's antics. The boy tipped Natsu's forehead for a bow and said, "Hey there, little lady!"

Ken deposited Natsu on the bed, before pulling his string one last time. The voice box said, "Somebody's poisoned the waterhole."

"C'mon, Maka. Oh, you're getting heavy," Ken lifted his baby sister out of her crib and carried her out the door. He quickly turned back to the pull-string Dragon Slayer, "See you later, Natsu!" And with that, he closed the door, making his way back down to the party.

A couple of moments after Ken and Maka left, the room became silent.

Suddenly, Natsu's eyes began to blink.

Then the lips moved.

Then the head nudged.

And finally, the Dragon Slayer doll sat up, his expression changing from a smile to a look of worry. He said to himself, "Spicy meatballs, the birthday party's today?"

From what Natsu suspected, there were a few matters at hand besides playtime with Ken.


	2. Staff Meeting

In this world where toys pretend to be lifeless in the presence of humans, they possess the uncanny ability to take on a life of their own. Whenever toys spring to life, they had the freedom to move around, think, feel, make their own decisions, and perform certain deeds or activities. If any human were to discover the secret behind these toys, the result would be catastrophic.

Ken Hirugashi's collection of toys, with Natsu Dragneel as leader of the group, maintained this delicate balance over the years. But as of today, being seen alive was the least of their worries. The real situation was the boy's birthday celebration moved to today, and that meant one thing: presents. When there were presents, there were new toys, and when there were new toys, there was a possibility that the old toys could never again be played, or worse.

Out of precaution, Natsu decided to hold an emergency meeting with his fellow toys. Noticing that Ken and Maka disappeared from the room, he gave the signal, "Okay, everybody! The coast is clear!"

Soon, the rest of the toys came to life. One by one, they emerged from the treasure chest toy box, the closet, the shelves, and their usual spots in a flurry of activity. Happy, who was an Exceed toy with put-together body part pieces, noticed most of his parts strewn across the floor. He sat himself upright and began to reassemble himself. Happy said, "Boy, that was one heck of a thrill ride during the whole 'robbing-the-bank' show. And here, I thought it said _Ages 3 and Up_ on my box."

Elsewhere, Gajeel wiped himself clean from the drool he received from Maka's mouth at the end of Ken's playtime using a nearby cloth. The Iron Dragon Slayer action figure just had to be the object of Maka's antics every time. Gajeel complained, "It's not fair! Seriously! I'm a Dragon Slayer, too, except the difference is that Natsu's a doll, and I'm an action figure. I was born seven years after Natsu was developed. I'm an action figure, not a doll! I'm best suited for combat, not babysitting. I'm not supposed to be babysitting Princess Drool."

Next, Erza Scarlet reassembled the pieces of her broken Adamantine Armor, put them together, and wore it around her chest. Pressing a button at the center, the Adamantine Armor instantly transformed back into her usual Heart Kreuz Armor. She said contently, "That's much better. It's a good thing my Requip Transformable Armor had put together pieces. Otherwise, I'd spend a day in the repair shop."

"Hey, Erza! Look! I'm Picasso!" The crimson-haired action figure turned to see Happy behind her, all of his facial pieces placed in the wrong slots to make it look funny.

Seeing Happy's mixed-up face caused Erza to burst into laughter, "Oh, my goodness, Happy! Your face is a sight to behold! You could be the next big thing in the museums!"

"Yeah, I get your Picasso expression and all, but it's not that funny," the sarcastic comment came from a dark brown-haired doll named Cana Alberona, holding a toy bottle of beer in hand. She wore a light blue bikini top, a pair of Capri pants, metal bracelets around her biceps, and high-heel sandals. "I'm gonna get myself around round of pretend beer." With that, she left while drinking the toy bottle, pretending that she was drunk. "What are you looking at, ya hockey puck?" She walked past a hockey puck figurine, who just shrugged.

Erza crossed her arms and commented, "Oh, dear. Some people just don't have any sense of culture. Then again, that's how criticism works."

"So much for preserving my self-esteem," Happy sighed, and he began to reassemble his body pieces back to their rightful spots.

Meanwhile, Natsu sat on the edge of the bed, observing all the activity of his fellow toys. He turned to a soldier-type action figure named Mest Gryder, standing on the nightstand. Natsu asked, "Hey, Mest, have you seen Happy?"

"He went under the bed, sir," Mest reported.

"Okay, thanks. At ease, soldier," Natsu gave a salute to Mest, before he hopped off the bed in search of Happy. "Happy? Hey, Happy! Happy, where are you, buddy?"

"Right here, Natsu!" Happy appeared from under the bed, pushing out a checker board set. He placed the checkers on the board, eager to play a game with his best friend. Happy cheered, "Another day of playtime goes with a little break time. Nothing beats a good old game of checkers with my best friend in the whole world!"

"You said it, Happy!" Natsu laughed in agreement, before his face turned serious. "But as much as I wanna play checkers with you, we're completely behind schedule."

Happy smiled widely, "Save the schedule for later, Natsu. Right now, it's all play and no work. Alright with you if I'll be red this time? You've always been red in every game we played."

Natsu answered, "No, Happy, I—"

Happy cut him off, "Oh, okay. You can be red again, and I'll be blue. It's matches our color."

"Not now, Happy," Natsu shook his head, and he lowered his voice to keep the last part a secret. "I've got some bad news."

" **BAD NEWS?!** " Happy exclaimed shockingly. Natsu covered up the Exceed toy's mouth and shushed him, aware that the other toys in the room were watching, anxious to hear any gossip.

Natsu leaned in closer to Happy and whispered, "I'll tell you later. Just gather everyone up for a staff meeting and be happy." Happy shuffled off, looking a bit worried. Natsu added more volume to his suggestion, "Be happy!"

" **AYE, SIR!** " Happy shouted jovially and picked up the pace, much to the pull-string Dragon Slayer doll's relief.

Natsu passed by a female toy robot with purple hair and glasses named Laki Olietta and a toy snake named Kinana partially hidden under the bedspread. He announced, "Staff meeting, everybody! Laki, Kinana, you're on podium duty."

Kinana yawned, "I'm trying to sleep. Can't it wait until morning?" She slid under the bedspread and attempted to sleep again.

"But it's morning already. C'mon, Kinana. Natsu's counting on us," Laki insisted, and she dragged Kinana out of the bed and followed after Natsu.

With preparations for the staff meeting underway, Natsu walked past a fat toy artist named Reedus Jonah with a sketch pad in hand. The pull-string Dragon Slayer doll stopped, smirking with a silly idea.

"Hey, Reedus…" Natsu spoke, causing Reedus to stop. "Draw!"

" _Oui!_ " Both Natsu and Reedus whipped around like gunfighters. Before the pull-string doll could full extend his arm out, the toy artist quickly took out his trusty pencil and etched the picture of a gun as quick as a flash, and pointed it at his opponent.

"Oh! You got me again!" Natsu exclaimed, pretending to be hurt.

Reedus grinned, "I've been working on that draw. I'm the fastest painter in the west."

Happy passed a group of toys on the floor and motioned them to follow him, "We've got a staff meeting today, everyone. Come on, let's go!"

Laki and Kinana began construction on a podium made out of Lego Blocks and a Tinker Toy tub. According to the customs, a staff meeting needs to be perfect and precise.

Natsu searched the floor, knowing that one more thing was needed for the meeting. "Now, where is that…? Oh, there it is." He spotted a doodle pad and went over, "Now who moved my doodle pad way over here?"

Before Natsu could pick it up, a small figure wearing a familiar demon mask jumped in front of him in an attempt to scare him. " **Surprise!** "

" **AAAAAGGHH!** " Natsu screamed, forced to fall off his feet.

And then, the figure laughed at Natsu's expense and removed the mask, revealing herself to be Wendy Marvell, the Sky Priestess doll. She said cheerily, "I sure scared you, Natsu!"

"Oh, you sure did," Natsu laughed admittedly, realizing that the scare was just a prank. "You're full of surprises, Wendy." He stood up and continued, "But one question. Were you scared of anything? I mean, ever since you're unwrapped? Tell me honestly."

Wendy replied, "Well, the first time I became one of Ken's toys, I was a little bit scared. I thought the rest of the toys were scary and creepy looking. But thanks to Mirajane and Erza, I've learned how to be brave. Everyone in this room wasn't scary at all. They're very kind and friendly. But what about you? Were you scared of anything?"

Natsu picked up the doodle pad and walked off with Wendy following him. He answered, "I was close to being scared that time when—"

His sentence was cut off when a crook suddenly grabbed his neck and jerked him towards a familiar girl in a black dress. Natsu recognized the figure in front of him and greeted, "Oh, hi, Mira. Hi."

Mirajane said gently, "I wanted to thank you, Natsu, for saving my brother and sister."

Natsu blushed, "Oh, hey, it was nothing."

Mirajane smiled, "Maybe I could get someone else to look after my brother and sister while I'm out tonight?"

Natsu chuckled, feeling very flustered. Mirajane was asking him out of a date, but the pull-string Dragon Slayer doll quickly composed himself and cleared his throat, "Oh, yeah… I'd love to, but you know that my heart belongs to _you-know-who._ "

Mirajane giggled in understanding, "I understand, Natsu. You still miss her. But if you need me, I'm just a couple of blocks away." She passed a stack of ABC blocks, leaving Natsu lovestruck… and at the same time, heaving with sadness and worry. He remembered that day very well, the day he lost his very _special someone_ to a loathsome terror, how much he missed her, how the toys mourned for her loss…

Meanwhile, an amassing crowd of toys gathered in front of the podium for the staff meeting, as instructed by Happy. "Come on, come on, smaller toys up front!" The Exceed toy turned to Natsu, who remained lovestruck in the middle of the room. "Hey, Natsu! C'mon!"

Instantly, Natsu snapped out of his trance, almost forgetting about the meeting. He rushed over to the now-completed podium, as the toy audience waited patiently and eagerly for today's topic. Once Natsu stepped up to the podium, a toy dog named Warren Rocko came over and gave him a microphone attached to a toy tape recorder. "Here's the mike, Natsu."

"Thanks, Warren," Natsu acknowledged, taking the microphone. He tapped on the device and began to speak into it in front of the crowd, "Okay—" He cringed when static feedback was heard. "Whoops. Feedback."

"I got it," Warren replied, adjusting the tape recorder knobs. Within seconds, the feedback disappeared.

Natsu exchanged a few puffs on the microphone, before he finally spoke to the audience, "Hello? Check? Better? Okay? Everybody hear me? Up on the shelf, can you hear me?" He gestured to the shelf, where Max Alors, Evergreen, Freed Justine, and Bickslow waved back. "Great! Okay, first item on the menu today…" He glanced at the doodle pad, "Ah, here it is. Has everyone picked a moving buddy?"

The toys all moaned at this. Ever since the Hirugashi family planned to move to another house, Natsu had to remind his fellow toys over and over again to get a moving buddy to avoid being left behind.

Cana groaned, holding her toy bottle, "Moving buddy? You can't be serious. Why'd you have to repeat the same thing over and over again? We all know the plan already."

"Natsu is our leader, Cana," Erza reminded, sitting down on the windowsill. "He is very wise at every decision he makes. We must have faith in him."

Gajeel scoffed, "Oh, please. You're putting too much faith in that pull-string, hand-me-down Dragon Slayer doll."

Erza stated sternly, "And apparently, you lack faith, Gajeel."

Gajeel grumbled, "Forget I said that."

"Find a moving buddy?" Wendy wondered. "I didn't know we're supposed to have one already."

"Do we have to hold hands?" Happy asked with a sly smile, waving his arm out of his socket. The other toys laughed and snickered at Happy's joke.

"Oh, yeah, you guys think this is a big joke," Natsu rolled his eyes. "Well, it won't be if at least one of you is lost. We've only got one week left before the move. I don't want any toys left behind! Moving buddy— if you don't have one, get one!" He then rechecked the doodle pad, "Alright, next up is… Tuesday night's _Plastic Corrosion Awareness_ meeting was, in my opinion, a big success, and we'd like to thank Levy for putting that on for us. Thanks, Levy!"

"You're welcome," a Speak & Spell toy named Levy McGarden mumbled, the words "You're welcome" scrolling across her display screen as she spoke.

Lifting a page off the doodle pad, Natsu elaborated the next topic he knew the toys would be shocked to hear, "Yes, and one minor note here:" He continued under his breath, "Ken's birthday party's been moved to today. Next, we have—"

" **WHAAAAAAAAAT?!** " Natsu never got a chance to finish, as everyone gasped at the shocking news.

"What do you mean, the party's today?!" Happy asked in surprise. "His birthday's not 'til next week!"

Gajeel demanded, "What goin' on down there? Is his mom losing her marbles?"

Erza assumed, "Obviously, she wanted to have the party before the move."

Natsu nodded, "Uh-huh. I saw the preparations with my own eyes. But who cares how early the party is? We've got everything under control. I'm not worried. You guys shouldn't be, either."

Happy agreed, "Of course you're not worried. You've been Ken's favorite toy since kindergarten. He knows you're the best, the coolest Dragon Slayer ever."

Natsu smiled, "Thanks, Happy."

"You think you're the only Dragon Slayer here?" Gajeel frowned. Natsu knew that his Dragon Slayer action-figure counterpart, born seven years after his development, had been jealous of the pull-string doll for being the fruit of Ken's affections. Just a little.

Natsu chuckled, "Sorry, Gajeel. Maybe next time, you'll be the main character."

Gajeel muttered to himself, "Sometimes I wish _I_ was Ken's favorite toy."

"Well, if Natsu said it's all right, then it's good enough for me," Erza confirmed. "He's never steered us wrong before."

Lisanna agreed, "Erza's right. All we have to do is believe in him, and the trust he holds in each of us."

Despite Erza and Lisanna's confidence, the other toys weren't convinced. Even Gajeel, who was the most bitter of the crowd, mimed kissing his own butt. Natsu pouted, "C'mon, guys! Every Christmas and birthday, we've been through worse. How hard can that be?"

"But what if Ken gets another magical girl toy like me?" Wendy asked worriedly. "A mean one? I just don't think I could handle that kind of rejection."

"Hey, listen, guys, no one's getting replaced," Natsu said firmly. "This is _Ken_ we're talking about." He stepped down from the podium and walked towards the crowd, "It doesn't matter how much we're played with. What matters is that we're here for Ken when he needs us. That's what we're made for. Right?"

The toys looked down and felt sheepish, taking Natsu's words for granted. Perhaps they were being a little overactive. The toys cared deeply for Ken with all their hearts, and they dreaded of the thought that they may not be wanted anymore. But as long as they're here for Ken when he needed them the most, it didn't matter to them. Besides, it's not like today was the day their owner would get a new toy that would change everything…

"Pardon me, my friends. I'd hate to break up the staff meeting, but…" Erza glanced out the window, before she gave a loud scream, " **THEY'RE HERE! BIRTHDAY GUESTS AT 3 O'CLOCK!** "

"Everybody, stay calm!" Natsu instructed.

Too late! The toys panicked and stampeded over Natsu towards the bedroom window, leaving him alone on the floor.

Natsu shrugged, "Well, meeting adjourned. This has been the Fairy Tail Room's Staff Meeting. I'm Natsu Dragneel the Salamander. See you next time."

The toys crowded around the bedroom window, trying to get a peak outside. That wasn't a good sign for them, especially with the amount of guests arriving like roaches.

Erza remarked, "By the Tower of Heaven! Take a look at all those presents."

"I can't see a thing!" Happy cried, trying to see past the toys. Unable to get a view, he pulled his eyes out of his head and held them up over the other toys. Outside the house, children were seen filing towards the front door, carrying presents for the birthday boy.

Cana frowned, "That figures. We're next month's garage sale fodder for sure."

Wendy asked nervously, "Are there any magical girl-shaped ones?"

Gajeel snapped in annoyance, "Ah, for crying out loud, they're all in boxes, you big baby!"

Lisanna added, "Besides, even if they weren't, how could we even tell when magical girls look exactly like humans?"

Elfman growled, "Those presents look big, but they ain't real men. Like me."

The toys noticed another kid bringing in a larger box. Wendy noted worriedly, "They're getting bigger."

"Everyone, look. There's a small one over there," Reedus pointed to a kid carrying a present that appeared to be small at first glance, but when the kid turned around, the present was actually four feet long! Most of the toys screamed in horror. It's official; their lives as Ken's toys were coming to an end!

Levy worried, "Spell the word 'trashcan.'"

Happy screamed, "We're doomed!"

Gajeel yelled, "We're goners!"

Wendy panicked, "What are we gonna do?"

Down on the floor, Natsu palmed his face in annoyance. He knew this madness would never end unless something had to be done. The leader of Ken's toys knew what he had to do.

"Alright, alright!" Natsu shouted, catching the toys' attentions. They turned to look down and listened. "If I send out Mest and the M.C. Troops, will you all calm down?"

"Yes, yes, we promise!" Wendy answered, forcing herself to calm down for Natsu's sake.

"Okay," Natsu said dryly. "Save your batteries."

"Excellent idea, Natsu," Erza approved.

"That's using the old noodle," Happy grinned.

Natsu jumped up onto Ken's bed and turned to Mest Gryder on the nightstand. He instructed, "Sergeant Gryder, take the M.C. Troops and establish a recon post downstairs, Code Red. You know what to do."

"Yes, sir!" Mest saluted. He then jumped to the floor, where a bucket of miniature action figures known as the M.C. (Magic Council) Troops stood nearby. Out of the bucket's lid emerged hundreds of toy soldiers, smaller than Mest, but prepared to follow their orders. Mest ordered, "Alright men, you heard him. Code Red! Repeat, we are at Code Red! Recon plan Era! Execute! Let's move, move, move, move!"

Immediately, the soldiers jumped out of the bucket and followed Mest to carry out their mission.


	3. Operation: Birthday

Ken's bedroom door creaked open, and a lone M.C. Troop ventured forth to make sure the coast is clear. Satisfied, he motioned for Mest and the others to proceed. Squads of M.C. Troops marched into the hall, carrying a jump rope and a baby monitor, with which to communicate and report their findings to the toys back at the room. Reaching the stairway, the soldiers leaped behind the banister to avoid detection. Mest took out his binoculars and surveyed the scene below, where Mrs. Hirugashi was rounding up Ken and his birthday guests.

Mrs. Hirugashi called, "Okay, come on, kids, everyone in the living room! It's almost time for the presents." She walked off, followed by Ken, Maka, and the kids.

Once they were out of sight, Mest motioned the M.C. Troops with a silent hand signal. Two Troops jumped out through the railing, popped miniature parachutes out of their backs, and floated down slowly. Upon landing, the two M.C. Troops swept the area with their plastic rifles, then gave the _all clear_ sign to the rest of the group. The jump rope was lowered from the banister, and the rest of the soldiers began to rappel down.

 **Back at Ken's Room…**

The toys gathered around the nightstand, where Natsu placed the receiving half of the baby monitor identical to the one Mest and the M.C. Troops carried around. Turning on the monitor, Natsu explained, "All right, this is how we find out what's in those presents."

Wendy asked hopefully, "Could it be the next issue of Magical Girls Monthly? It's my favorite!"

Lisanna added, "Or maybe, we could get a brand new make-up kit."

Erza guessed, "New upgrades to my Requip Armor?"

Elfman spoke up, "Or a punching bag?"

Mirajane beamed, "Some new books to read?"

"Let's just wait and see," Natsu suggested. "Leave it to Mest and the M.C. Troops. They'll give us the rundown on those presents."

 **Downstairs, at the hallway…**

Mest and the M.C Troops marched in formation across the floor for the party. Suddenly, footsteps were heard approaching from behind the kitchen door, along with Mrs. Hirugashi's voice. "Okay, who's hungry?"

"I am!" the kids cheered excitedly. Immediately, Mest signaled his men to freeze in their various classic action poses.

"Here comes the sushi! I've got takuyaki and barbeque— Ow!" The door opened, and Mrs. Hirugashi's foot came down hard on top of a M.C. Troop, squeezing it under her heel with a crack. "What in the world?" She looked down and noticed the toys on the floor, before she sighed, "I thought I told him to pick these up." With that, she brushed off Mest and the M.C. Troops with a sweep of her foot, and continued on to the living room.

 **Ken's Room…**

"Shouldn't they be there by now?" Wendy wondered.

"What's taking them so long?" Happy asked.

"So far, there's no response from the M.C. Troops," Erza confirmed.

Natsu chuckled confidently, "Relax, guys. They're a group of professionals. It's not like they're lying on the job or anything…"

 **Downstairs…**

Ironically, Mest and the M.C. Troops were lying down on the job… though not by choice. When Mrs. Hirugashi was gone, Mest motioned his men to proceed towards a nearby houseplant that looked into the living room. They should be able to see the unwrapping of the birthday presents from there.

As the M.C. Troops continued onward, Mest turned around and gasped upon noticing an injured Troop struggling to drag himself forward— a causality of Mrs. Hirugashi's foot. Concerned, Mest headed over to help the injured soldier to his feet.

"G-Go on without me," the Troop moaned. "Just go."

"A good soldier never leaves a man behind, no matter how dangerous the situation!" Mest said adamantly. He may be risking himself to help the wounded toy, but it was all in the line of duty. Looking up, Mest gave the signal to the remaining M.C. Troops on the stairwell. They lowered themselves using the jump rope, riding the baby monitor. Once downstairs, they hustled the device towards the houseplant.

Just then, a ball bounced into the hallway, followed by the sounds of footsteps and the clamor of children. Mest, supporting the wounded M.C. Troop, reached the plant, right on the heels of the squad with the baby monitor. They quickly concealed themselves in the houseplant just before the children ran by.

With the baby monitor set in place, an M.C. Troop medic evaluated the wounded soldier, and gave the thumbs up, indicating that he was making a slow recovery. Mest scanned the party with his binoculars, mostly at the pile of brightly wrapped gifts sitting atop the living room coffee table. This was the soldiers' main objective.

"Target in sight," Mest confirmed. _Operation: Birthday_ was underway.

 **Ken's Room…**

The toys perked up as static emitted from the baby monitor. Mest's voice spoke over the device, " _Come in, Fire Dragon. This is Memory Lane._ "

"It's showtime!" Natsu smiled. "This is it, guys! This is it! Quiet, quiet, quiet!" The toys quickly silenced, their ears prepped up for whatever Mest had to say.

Mest continued, " _Come in, Fire Dragon. All right, Ken's opening the first present now._ "

"Carla! Carla! Carla! Carla! Carla!" Happy chanted excitedly. When the other toys stared at him oddly, he remarked, "Hey, a cat can dream, can't he?"

Mest reported, " _The bow's coming off… He's ripping the wrapping paper… It's a… it's… it's a lunchbox. We've got a lunchbox here._ "

"A lunchbox?" Natsu said in disbelief, but also secretly in relief.

"Lunchbox?" Gajeel echoed, equally surprised.

"This is a birthday present?" Erza questioned.

"For lunch!" Happy laughed jokingly.

Mest's voice spoke again, " _Okay, the second present… It appears to be… okay, it's bed sheets._ "

"Who invited _that_ kid?" Gajeel raised an eyebrow.

 **Several minutes later…**

The presents kept on unwrapping, and each unwrap was a breath of relief for the toys. So far, there had been no new toys to replace the old ones. Ken received new DVDs, a PlayStation 4 with new games such as _Street Fighter V_ and _BlazBlue: Chrono Phantasma Extend,_ new household items, and such. Eventually, it all came down to one present left for Ken to open.

"Aww, only one left," Mrs. Hirugashi pouted. It would appear that once the present was unwrapped, the new arrivals would cease. The kids, including Mest and the M.C. Troops, were ready for anything.

 **Ken's Room…**

" _Okay, we're on the last present now…_ " Mest's voice echoed from the baby monitor.

"Last present!" Natsu called out to his fellow toys. They were anxious to know if their worries were all for naught.

" _It's a big one… It's… It's…_ " Mest stuttered. And then, he added in a flare, " _It's a board game! Repeat, Battleship!_ "

The toys all cheered in happiness and relief. None of them were getting replaced after all! "Oh, yeah! Heck, yeah! That's MANLY!" Elfman gave Happy a congratulatory slap on the back, unintentionally causing some of his body parts to fall out.

Happy shouted, "Hey! I just got myself fixed!"

Elfman chuckled apologetically, "Sorry about that, furball."

 **Downstairs…**

The mission was a success, and the end result filled Mest with confidence. Turning to the M.C. Troops, he said, "Mission accomplished. Well done, men. Pack it up, we're going home." With that, the M.C. Troops turned off the baby monitor.

 **Ken's Room…**

Natsu crossed his arms and smirked, "See? What did I tell ya? Nothing to worry about."

Erza smiled, "I knew you were right all along, Natsu. I never doubted you for a second."

 **Downstairs…**

The M.C. Troops were about to exit the plant when Mest heard Mrs. Hirugashi's voice. "Wait a minute! Ooh… What do we have here?!" Mest lifted his binoculars back to his eyes and saw Ken's mother opening the closet and pulling out…

…a surprise extra present! If there's one thing about birthday parties, it's to always expect the unexpected. The present was covered in blue wrapping paper, decorated in snowflakes.

"Wait!" Mest shouted in alarm. "Turn that thing back on!" The M.C. Troops turned on the baby monitor again, desperate to alert their friends of the situation.

 **Ken's Room…**

" _Come in, Fire Dragon! Come in, Fire Dragon!_ " The toys whipped their heads around in surprise at the new transmission. " _Mom has pulled a surprise present from the closet! Ken's opening it…_ "

 **Downstairs…**

"He's really excited about this one. It's a huge package," Mest reported, noticing Ken holding the surprise present with an excited smile. Just then, the kids stepped in front of the package, blocking Mest's view. "Get outta the— One of the kids is in the way! I can't see it! It's… it's a…"

He never got the chance to finish the sentence. His mouth was agape with complete surprise. Ken held his unwrapped present high into the air, and the kids cheered loudly and excitedly. This was no ordinary present…

 **Ken's Room…**

Finally, Wendy couldn't take it anymore. She was desperate to know what Ken received for his birthday. "It's a what?! What is it?!" She grabbed a leg of the nightstand and shook it wildly, causing the baby monitor to drop to the floor. The impact caused the batteries to roll out, much to Wendy's dismay. "Oh, no!"

"You big blueberry klutz! Now we'll never know what it is!" Gajeel shouted angrily at the Sky Priestess doll.

"Way to go, Wendy!" Cana scowled, as she and the other toys rushed to the fallen monitor.

"C'mon, guys! We gotta fix this thing! We gotta know what Ken's got!" Happy cried frantically. He tried to correctly insert the batteries in the empty slot, but to no avail.

"No, no, no!" Natsu shouted. "Turn them around, turn them around!"

Happy screamed, "I'M TRYING!"

"You're putting them backwards, ya stupid cat!" Gajeel yelled.

"Plus is positive, minus is negative!" Laki cried.

"The plus end goes to the plus part, and the minus end goes to the minus part!" Kinana added.

"Geez, do I have to do everything myself?!" Natsu yelled impatiently. "Let me!" He jumped off the bed and shoved Happy and Gajeel aside. He quickly worked on putting back the batteries into the baby monitor.

 **Downstairs…**

"Let's go to my room, guys!" Ken urged. He rushed out of the living room and past the houseplant, his friends close behind him.

Mest took notice and shouted urgently into the baby monitor, "Red Alert! Red Alert! Ken is coming upstairs!"

 **Ken's Room…**

"There!" Natsu placed the last battery in, and just in time, Mest's voice boomed from the baby monitor.

" _Juvenile invasion! Repeat! Resume your positions NOW!_ "

" **KEN'S COMING!** " Natsu screamed in a panic. " **EVERYBODY, BACK TO YOUR PLACES! HURRY!** "

Nobody needed to be told twice. The toys scattered all over the room to resume their original positions. They wouldn't let Ken or any of the kids see them alive. No one wants to see a living toy, don't they?

Meanwhile, Happy looked around frantically, missing his right ear. "Where's my ear?! Who's seen my ear?! Did you see my ear?!"

"Outta the way! Here I come! Here I come—" Gajeel wasn't watching where he was going when he bumped his head into a trashcan, causing him to fall over.

Everyone quickly scurried to their places as the kids' footsteps grew louder. Natsu, who climbed back onto the bed, fell limp in his spot. Once all the toys were back in position, the kids exploded in. Deafening noises of joy and laughter filled the room as Ken held the new present in his hands.

"Hey, look! His Ice-Make Magic lights up!" one of the kids cheered.

"Take that, Silver!" Ken said excitedly.

"Quick, make a space!" One of Ken's friends flung Natsu off the bed and slammed some sort of cardboard box right onto it. The pull-string Dragon Slayer doll slid, unnoticed, down the gap between the bed and the back wall. "This is where the spaceship lands."

Ken stated, "And when you press his back, he does a karate chop action!"

"Come on down, guys! It's time for games!" Mrs. Hirugashi's voice called from downstairs. "We've got prizes!"

The kids ran outside, taking their rambunctious laughter with them and slamming the door on their way out. From all the fuss and excitement over Ken's new gift, this could only mean one thing…

Ken got himself a new toy.


	4. Gray Fullbuster the Space Hero

Following the kids' departure, the toys slowly came to life. After making sure that it was safe to come out, they piled out and made their way towards the bed, curious at what the kids had set up there.

"What is it?" Gajeel asked.

"Can you see it?" Mirajane gestured up the bed.

"What in the world is up there?" Erza wondered.

"Natsu, who's up there with you?" Wendy called up.

"We'd like to take a closer look!" Happy insisted.

The next minute, the toys were shocked to find Natsu crawling from under the bed. Happy asked with a puzzled look, "Natsu? Whatcha doing under the bed, buddy?"

"Uh, nothing. It's just nothing," Natsu said, standing up and brushing himself off. "I'm sure Ken was just a little excited, that's all. Too much cake and ice cream, I bet. It's just a mistake."

"Well, that _mistake_ is sitting in your spot, Natsu," Gajeel smirked, pointing to the bed.

Wendy gasped, "Have you been replaced?"

"Guys, what did I tell you earlier? Nobody's getting replaced," Natsu reassured his friends. Of course, they gave each other doubtful looks, suspecting that Natsu was hiding his own worries. "Now let's all be polite, and give whatever it is up there a nice, big Ken's Room Welcome."

Natsu climbed up the side of the bed, eager to give a warm welcome to Ken's new toy. By the time he reached the top, his eyes widened at the sight of the new arrival: an expensive-looking space action figure resembling that of an 18-year old man with short black hair standing heroically at the center of the bed. He wore a white long-sleeved waistcoat under a blue shirt strapped with belts, a detachable glass bowl-shaped space helmet, a communicator around his right wrist, and buttons covering the center of his chest. His name was Gray Fullbuster.

With a blink, the new toy sprang to life, causing Natsu to gulp and duck under. He scanned the bedroom, taking in his surroundings with deep breathing under his helmet. How did he come to be in this strange, suspicious place?

Gray pressed a button on his chest, making an electronic beep. He spoke into it, "Gray Fullbuster to Lamia Scale. Come in, Lamia Scale." He waited a few seconds, but there was no response. Gray pressed the button again, "Lamia Scale, come in. Do you read me? Why don't they answer?" He looked off to the side and gasped when he saw…

" **MY SHIP!** " The space toy caught wind of his ripped packaging, which turned out to be a cardboard box designed to look like a spaceship. He ran up to the box and investigated the damage. After much examination, Gray groaned, "Great, just great. Why didn't I take my friends with me? This'll take weeks to repair the ship on my own!"

Gray opened the hatch of his wrist communicator and spoke to it, "Gray Fullbuster Mission Log: Stardate 4072. My ship has run off course en route to Planet Tenrou. I've crash-landed on a _strange_ planet. The impact must've woken me from hypersleep." He sprung up and down on the squishy surface of the bed, "The terrain seems a bit unstable." He tapped the sticker of controls on his communicator, "No read-out yet if the air is breathable. And there seems to be no sign of intelligent life anywhere."

Suddenly, Natsu's face popped up in front of Gray's. He greeted happily, "Hello!"

" **WHO'S THAT?!** " Gray yelled in alarm.

" **AUGH!** " Both toys jumped back, and Gray took a fighting stance. Putting his hands together, he pressed an invisible button that caused both hands to glow with a blue light. He aimed the blue beam on Natsu's forehead and held it there.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Hang on, wait a second!" Natsu eased. "Did I frighten you? Didn't mean to. Sorry. Hi, my name is Natsu Dragneel, the Fire Dragon Slayer. And this is Ken's room. We also call it the Fairy Tail Room. I just wanted to say, there's been a bit of a mix-up here. This is my spot. You see, the bed here…" Gray eyed the symbol on the open sleeve of Natsu's waistcoat: a mark with the fairy of a tail. He quickly assumed that the salmon-haired toy was some sort of a hero or law enforcement.

"So you're the hero around these parts, huh?" Gray asked, deactivating the blue light in his hands. "It's about time you got here. I'm Gray Fullbuster, Space Hero from Lamia Scale, Universe Protection Unit." He walked around the bed and surveyed the situation, with Natsu keeping up, "My ship crash-landed here by mistake."

Natsu nodded, "Well, yeah. It is a mistake. Because, you see, the bed is _my_ spot."

Gray continued, apparently not hearing Natsu, "I gotta repair my turbo boosters. Do you folks still use fossil fuels, or have you discovered energy fusion?"

Natsu was confused at first, but decided to help Gray of sorts, "Well, let's see, we've got Double As..."

"Get down!" Gray shoved Natsu down on the bed and re-activated his hand laser lights. "Freeze! Who goes there?!" He was threatening the other toys that peeked over the edge of the bed.

"Don't hurt us!" Wendy waved her hands. "It's okay! We're friends!"

Gray asked Natsu, "You know these guys?"

"Yes," Natsu answered, getting annoyed. "They're Ken's toys."

It was satisfying enough for Gray to hear that those strange life forms associated themselves with the pull-string Dragon Slayer. Turning off his laser lights, he motioned, "All right, everyone. You're clear to come out." The toys came up the bed, and Gray walked over to them, "The name's Gray Fullbuster. I come in peace."

"Oh, I'm so glad you're not a scary magical girl!" Wendy cried joyfully, vigorously shaking Gray's hand.

"Thanks, little girl," Gray chuckled. "And I wanna thank you all for your kind welcome. I appreciate it."

"Hey, what's that button do?" Happy pointed at a button in Gray's chest.

"I'll show you," Gray smiled, pressing the button. In response, a voice sample spoke from inside of him, " _Gray Fullbuster to the Rescue!_ "

"Whoa!" the toys all gasped in awe.

Laki remarked, "Interesting voice sample."

Kinana added, "And it comes with a beep."

Happy pointed out, "Natsu's got something like that too, you know. His is a pull-string, except…"

"Only it sounds like a car ran over it," Gajeel said bluntly. Natsu reached behind his back, grabbing his pull-string sensitively.

"Yeah, but not like this one," Cana stated. "This is a quality sound system. Probably all copper wiring, huh? So, Gray, where you from? Singapore? Hong Kong?"

"Well, no," Gray explained. "Actually, I'm stationed up in the Ishgal Quadrant of Sector E-L." Natsu turned away and glanced down at the box in which Gray arrived. There was a cartoon drawing of the space toy giving the exact, word-for-word spiel he was now giving. "As the leader of Lamia Scale, the elite Universe Protection Unit of the Space Hero Corps, alongside my friends Lyon Vastia, Yuka Suzuki, Toby Horhorta, Sherry Blendy, and her cousin Sherria, I protect the galaxy from the threat of invasion from the sinister Tartaros Empire and its leader, the Evil Emperor Silver, sworn enemy of the Cosmic Alliance."

The room was left speechless, as the toys were impressed of Gray's background. Happy spoke first, "Really? I'm from Sugimaya, Inc."

"And I'm from Takara Tomy," Wendy piped up. "Well, I'm not actually from Takara Tomy. I'm actually from a smaller company that was purchased in a leveraged buyout."

Natsu rolled his eyes; he simply couldn't believe how his friends were taking a liking to this new toy. He walked over to Mirajane and commented bitterly, "You'd think they've never seen a new toy before."

"Can you blame them? Look at him," Mirajane gestured to Gray. "He looks stronger than a Swiss army knife."

Out of curiosity, Wendy pressed an invisible button on Gray's left hand, activating his laser light. Gray quickly pulled his hand away and cautioned, "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Be careful, little girl. You wouldn't want to be frozen by my Ice-Make Magic."

"Ice-Make Magic? That makes you an ice wizard! Color me impressed," Gajeel crossed his arms. He turned to Natsu and teased, "Which reminds me, how could _you_ don't have ice magic, Natsu?"

"It's not ice magic!" Natsu shot back in annoyance. "It's a little light bulb in his hand that blinks."

"Big Brother Elf, what's with Natsu?" Lisanna whispered to Elfman.

"Ice envy," Elfman whispered back.

"All right, that's enough!" Natsu stepped in front of Gray, deciding to put a stop to this before it got too far. "Look, we're all _very_ impressed with Ken's new toy…"

"Toy?" Gray asked, as if he never heard the word before.

"T-O-Y. Toy," Natsu clarified.

Gray countered, "Excuse me, Pyro, but I think the word you're searching for is 'Space Hero.'"

Natsu grinned slyly, "The word I'm searching for, I can't say, because there's preschool toys present."

"Gettin' kinda tense, aren't ya?" Gajeel taunted.

"Um, Mr. Gray? There's one question I wanna ask you," Wendy raised her hand. "What does a Space Hero actually do?"

"He's not a Space Hero!" Natsu shouted exasperatedly. "He doesn't fight evil or shoot ice magic or fly!"

"Excuse me…" Gray interrupted, and he pressed a red button at the right side of his chest. Suddenly, a pair of giant ice wings popped out of his back. Once again, the toys gasped in awe, even more so than before.

Erza remarked, "Impressive wingspan."

Elfman smirked, "Manly!"

Happy marveled, "Cool!"

Cana grinned, "I'm starting to like this guy."

"Oh, come on!" Natsu scoffed, forcing himself not to laugh. "These are plastic! He can't fly." He grabbed one of Gray's wings and shook it to demonstrate his point.

Gray pulled away from Natsu's grasp and stated proudly, "They're made out of ice from my Ice-Make Magic. They're indestructible. And I _can_ fly."

Natsu shook his head, "No, you can't."

Gray nodded, "Yes, I can."

"You can't."

"Can."

"Can't!"

"Can!"

"Can't! Can't! CAN'T!" Natsu snapped, prodding Gray in the chest until he almost fell over.

Gray snapped back, "Oh, yeah? I bet I could fly around this room with my eyes closed!"

"Okay then, Mr. Grim Busta Rhymes. Prove it!" Natsu suggested smugly. It could at least knock some sense into Gray's head and snap him out of his delusions.

"All right, then. I will," Gray replied sternly, determined to prove to the stubborn pull-string Dragon Slayer doll that he could fly. "Stand back, everyone!"

The crowd of toys made room for Gray as he headed towards the edge of the bed and climbed up the bedpost. Natsu just crossed his arms and smirked, waiting for Gray to fail. The space toy posed like a high diver, shut his eyes…

"To infinity and beyond!"

…and jumped off the bed. Gray plummeted straight down, hit a big rubber ball, and bounced right up. He then landed on a Hot Wheels car, which raced him down a track, through the loop, and off a ramp. Gray soared upward into a plane mobile hanging from the ceiling, and he got himself wedged between the plane's wheels. The impact turned on the plane's motor, making it spin around and around.

Mesmerized, all the other toys watched from the bed and spun their heads around in motion with the mobile plane. Eventually, the centrifugal force caused Gray to separate from the plane, sailing him across the room towards the bed. Finally, he made a perfect landing right in front of Natsu, then opened his eyes.

"Can!" Gray grinned cockily.

Thrilled by the performance, the crowd of toys gathered around Gray, and they cheered and clapped in adoration. Erza admired, "You flew magnificently! I wish I had that adjustment in my armor!"

Wendy commented, "That was amazing! You're the greatest ever!"

"I found my moving buddy," Mirajane announced, and Natsu stared at her in horror. Even his 'temporary love interest' was taking a liking to this nutcase who thought he could fly!

"Thank you," Gray laughed, grateful for the praise the toys gave him. "Thank you all. Thank you."

"That wasn't flying!" Natsu protested in disbelief. "That was falling with style!" His words fell on deaf ears, however, as the toys' attention was focused on Gray.

"I betcha the dolls are really going for ya. Can you teach me that?" Happy asked Gray with a smile.

Natsu was left alone at the other end of the bed, fuming with jealousy. This was getting on his nerves. A while earlier, his fellow toys were worried about being replaced, and now this? He was supposed to be the role model of the room, the most respected toy in Ken's collection, for goodness sake!

"He is so amazing," Reedus got caught up in the euphoria as he approached Natsu. "I should paint a picture of him!"

"Oh, shut up!" Natsu barked at Reedus. The toy artist paid no attention to Natsu's harshness and immediately clammed up. The pull-string Dragon Slayer doll kept glaring at Gray, "In a couple of days, everything's gonna be back to the way it was. They'll see. Oh, they'll see. I'm still Ken's favorite toy."

Unfortunately, he was completely unaware that in the next couple of days, things were about to get worse for him before the big move. He couldn't be more wrong.

* * *

The next day, Ken jumped up and down on his bed, laughing as he held Natsu.

 ** _I was on top of the world livin' high  
It was right in my pocket_**

The energetic boy jumped off, sailing Natsu through the air like a plane for a few seconds before putting him down next to a building he drew on the side of a cardboard box.

 ** _I was livin' the life  
Things were just the way they should be_**

Next, Ken landed Gray on the floor opposite of Natsu. He made him point his hands at the pull-string Dragon Slayer doll, pushing the button so it looked like he was using his Ice-Make Magic. Ken shouted, imitating Gray's voice, " **Ice-Make: Lance!** "

 ** _When from out of the sky like a bomb  
Comes some little punk in a rocket_**

The boy smacked Natsu across the room, as if he'd been blown away by Gray's magic.

 ** _Now all of a sudden  
Some strange things are happening to me_**

Ken ran into the closet, and when he came out, the dragon scale scarf around his neck was gone. Instead, he was wearing a white waistcoat similar to Gray's. "Gray Fullbuster to the Rescue!" Ken cheered, and he dashed outside the room. As soon as he was gone, Natsu stared in shock and disbelief. His owner seemed to love playing with Gray more than he does him.

And it just got worse. In the blink of an eye, all of Natsu's Dragon Slayer-themed items in the bedroom disappeared and changed into that of Gray's space-themed motif, including that of Lamia Scale— the drawings, the merchandise, the posters, everything.

 ** _Strange things are happening to me_**

Even the pillows and the bedspread were replaced, as evidenced by the blanket depicting a large picture of Gray posing dynamically. Natsu was devastated by the sudden change, having witnessed all the stuff based on his likeness disappear before his very eyes. By looking at Gray's picture, Natsu felt like he was taunted.

 ** _Strange things_**

Later, Wendy was trying to chant the words of a classic magical girl spell with little success. Gray suggested a few tips for the Sky Priestess doll; he straightened Wendy's posture, and motioned her to let it out from the belly.

 ** _Strange things are happening to me_**

" **Sky Dragon's ROOOOOOAAAARRR!** " Wendy tried again, this time giving a loud scream that sounded like a roar. The pressure blasted Happy's body parts away. She shook Gray's hand, a very happy look on her face.

 ** _Ain't no doubt about it_**

Next, Natsu passed Reedus, who made a large portrait of Gray with his name on it. Frowning, he looked across the room to see Gray combing Lisanna, Mirajane, and Evergreen's hairs, chatting away like a hairdresser as the ladies giggled.

 ** _I had friends  
I had lots of friends_**

Natsu furiously snatched the portrait from Reedus and threw it aside.

 ** _Now all my friends are gone_**

Later, Laxus Dreyar, Elfman, Erza, Kinana, Gajeel, and Bickslow were lifting Tinkertoys as weights, and Gray was using an upside-down Laki's feet as a treadmill.

 ** _And I'm doin' the best I can to carry on_**

Happy attempted to lift his Tinkertoy barbell, but ended up tumbling backwards with a yelp, leaving his paws connected to the barbell.

 ** _I had power (Power)  
I was respected (Respected)_**

Another time, Natsu looked around for Happy, hoping a game of checkers would get his mind off everything. He looked under the bed, but there was no sign of him.

 ** _But not anymore_**

Natsu peeked around the corner of the bed to see Happy, Wendy, Laki, and Kinana, under Gray's direction, setting Gray's cardboard ship up on top of a stack of ABC blocks for 'repair.'

 ** _And I've lost the love to the one whom I adored_**

In frustration, Natsu kicked the checkerboard, sending the pieces flying. One of the checkers ricocheted off the dresser, and boomeranged into Natsu's mouth.

 ** _Let me tell you 'bout it  
Strange things are happening to me_**

On Ken's bed, Gray sat on the edge giving Happy a tender message, and his legs stretched over the other side where Natsu sat. Happy's little feet whacked Natsu in the face repeatedly. Annoyed, the salmon-haired toy shoved Happy's feet off the bed, leaving the rest of his body no choice but to eventually follow.

 ** _Strange things_**

At bedtime, Ken loaded his toys into the toy box, until just Natsu and Gray were left. He looked from one toy to another, trying to decide which one he should sleep with.

 ** _Strange things are happening to me_**

Later that night, Ken's decision was made. He was sound asleep, with Gray tucked under the cover next to him.

 ** _Ain't no doubt about it_**

Natsu peeked out from the toy box with a dejected look on his face. That so-called "Space Hero" came out of nowhere, stole his friends away, and now he stole his little boy, too? Natsu wanted nothing more than to beat Gray within an inch of his life, but he knew he couldn't risk exposing himself to Ken.

 ** _Strange things_**

Instead, he closed the lid with a broken heart. There's no stopping the inevitable; Gray replaced him as Ken's favorite toy.

 ** _Strange things_**


	5. Takeshi the Toy Torturer

The next morning, Natsu slightly pried the lid of the toy box to peek out. The coast was clear, and Ken was nowhere to be seen. With that settled, he tossed the lid all the way off, taking a couple of deep breaths of fresh air. It was so stuffy in the chest that he almost suffocated, thanks to a certain owner who dumped him in the box in favor of Gray.

"Finally!" Natsu breathed. He reached for his scarf, only to find that it was missing from his neck. "Hey, who's got my scarf?"

A squeaky shark toy named Wakaba Mine popped up, wearing Natsu's scarf. "Look, I'm Natsu! I've got a fire in my belly! I'm all fired up!"

"Ha ha ha. Very funny," Natsu said sarcastically. "Give me that!" He snatched the scarf away from Wakaba and wore it around his neck. Toys like Wakaba just had to make a good laugh, mostly at Natsu's expense.

Leaping from the toy box, the pull-string Dragon Slayer doll turned to see Gray talking to Happy and Wendy. He said, "Say there, Happy and Wendy, let me show you something. It looks as though I've been accepted into your culture. Your chief, Ken, inscribed his name on me." He lifted his foot up to show the sole of his boot, with a kanji of Ken's name written on it in ink. Ken usually marked his own name on a select few toys he cared and played with the most.

"Wow!" Happy and Wendy chorused.

"With permanent ink, too!" Wendy pointed out. Natsu observed the scene, steaming hot like a teapot.

"Well, as much as I'd like to chat with you a bit more, I should get back to repairing my ship," Gray grinned and walked off. Fixing a cardboard spaceship should take some time, though he remained blissfully unaware of his true nature as a toy.

Natsu lifted up his own foot, where Ken wrote his name at the sole of his sandal in crayon, though it was largely faded. It was written a few years back, when Ken first received him. That had been the best day of his life. A few seconds later, his heart felt very heavy.

"Don't let it get to you, Natsu," Mirajane's voice spoke behind Natsu, causing him to yelp in alarm and put his foot down.

Natsu straightened himself up, trying his best to conceal his insecurities. He replied nervously, "Uh, let what? I don't know what you're talking about. What do you mean?"

"Look, I know Ken's excited about Gray, but you know, he'll always have a special place for you," Mirajane assured.

"Yeah. Like the attic," Gajeel laughed callously as he walked by.

"Alright, that's it!" Natsu's temper finally reached its boiling point. Somebody had to set that deluded space toy straight. Since he became the newest addition to Ken's collection of toys, he's been nothing but trouble. Fuming with jealousy, the salmon-haired toy stormed towards Gray.

The space toy in question was busy trying to repair his cardboard ship, still up on the ABC blocks. He lied down on a skateboard and slid under the ship, with Kinana and Laki waiting for instructions. "Unidirectional bonding strip," Gray instructed, holding out his hand.

"Mr. Fullbuster wants more tape," Laki turned to Kinana, who ripped off a piece of tape with her mouth from a tape dispenser.

Gray's repairs soon grinded to a halt when Natsu approached the skateboard, grabbed hold of his foot, and rolled him out from under the ship. Natsu growled, "Listen, Full Bus Stop, you stay away from Ken." He pointed to himself for emphasis, "He's mine. And _no one_ is taking him away from me."

"What are you talking about?" Gray cocked an eyebrow. Turning to Laki and Kinana, he asked, "Where's that bonding strip?" He rolled himself back under the cardboard ship, but Natsu rolled him out again.

"And another thing, STOP with this spaceman hero stuff!" Natsu barked. "It's getting on my nerves!"

Gray shot up in irritation, "Are you saying you wanna lodge a complaint with Lamia Scale?"

"Oh-ho-ho! Okay, so you wanna do it the hard way, huh?" Natsu taunted, warming up his knuckles.

"Don't even think about it, Pyro," Gray warned, face-to-face with the salmon-haired toy.

"Oh, yeah?! Tough guy?!"

Natsu shoved Gray's chest, not caring whether or not anyone saw him. As he did, his hands accidentally activated a button that make the glass bowl helmet open up its hatch. And just like that, Gray grabbed his neck and dropped to his knees, gasping for air, as if he was losing oxygen in outer space. He writhed on the ground, holding his breath. The other toys weren't sure how to react, while Natsu just stared blankly at Gray. He couldn't believe how dumb this is.

Gray was about to draw his last breath, but to his surprise, nothing happened. He sniffed the air first, then came to a surprising realization, "Wait a minute… The air isn't toxic!" He stood up and snapped at Natsu, "What's the big idea, opening a spaceman's helmet on an uncharted planet, Ash-for-Brains?! My eyeballs could've been sucked from their sockets!" With that, he pressed a button, closing the helmet.

"You actually think you're _the_ Gray Fullbuster?" Natsu blinked his eyes, completely baffled. That space toy was led to believe that he was the real thing. He never saw a toy act that way before until now… and that amused him. Suddenly, Natsu's surprised expression turned into laughter. "That's a hoot! And here, I thought it was all a big joke!" He turned to his friends and shouted mockingly, gesturing to Gray, "Hey, guys! Look! It's the _real_ Gray Fullbuster!"

"You're mocking me, aren't you?" Gray frowned, fighting back every urge to turn Natsu into a popsicle.

"Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no— **GRAY, LOOK! AN ALIEN!** " Natsu yelled, pointing behind Gray.

" **WHERE?!** " Gray whipped his head around to look. Natsu laughed hysterically when the space toy fell for that trick, and collapsed to the ground as he continued laughing. Gray just glared down at him. He was strongly considering freezing him to a chunk of ice.

"Ha, ha! Yes!" Just then, barking from outside the window caught Gray's attention, followed by fits of malicious laughter. All of the toys froze in fear, easily recognizing the voice from a mile away. Natsu stopped laughing, and Happy and Wendy hid under the bed. It's him…!

"Uh-oh…" Natsu gulped, gesturing to the bedroom window.

"It's Takeshi!" Happy and Wendy trembled.

" **TAKESHI!** " Most of the toys screamed in horror at the mention of that name and scattered to hide.

"Takeshi Sakamoto the Toy Torturer? I thought he was at summer camp," Lisanna wondered, as she, Natsu, Erza, Elfman, Mirajane, Gajeel, and Cana walked over to the desk.

Cana quipped, "They must've kicked him out early this year."

Elfman assumed, "Or maybe he's not a real man like the rest of the campers."

"Oh, dear. Not Takeshi Sakamoto…" Erza grimaced.

"Incoming!" the boy's voice cried. Natsu and the gang jumped on top of the desk, peering out the window to get a better look at the danger next door.

The Hirugashi household stood next to the home of the Sakamotos, a family that barely interacted with the former, mostly because of the behavior of one of their kids. The toys' attention focused on the Sakamoto household's backyard, dubbed by most as the _Backyard of Doom,_ having gained notoriety for a toy's pain and suffering. Any toy that ventured there never came back in one piece… and those lucky enough had survived.

The toys glanced at Takeshi Sakamoto, also known as the Toy Torturer, a 10-year old boy with short brown hair and wearing a black shirt with a skull. Alongside him was his vicious toy-eating bulldog, Zeke. A tiny figure stood isolated in the middle of the yard. Takeshi pummeled it with rocks, while Zeke strained at his leash, jumping and barking wildly, wanting to get a piece of the action.

"Who is it this time?" Erza asked, heavily concerned of Takeshi's newest victim.

"I can't tell," Natsu shook his head. He turned around, "Where's Alzack?"

"Right here, Natsu," called a cowboy doll named Alzack Connell, who was carrying a pair of binoculars. "Bisca was busy taking care of Asuka, so I'm bringing the Connells' trusty Cowboy Binoculars." He approached Natsu from the other end of the desk and handed Natsu the device.

"Thanks," Natsu smiled, and he held up the binoculars.

"I simply couldn't bear to watch the suffering of another innocent toy. It's the same thing that happened to one of our own," Erza worried.

"You're telling me," Cana agreed. "We lost her to a monster like _him._ We miss her big time."

"All right, guys, let's see who it is…" Natsu got a better view of what Takeshi was about to torment: a toy soldier with glasses and black hair tied up in two braids, and his attire was blue and white with a cape. A huge M-80 dynamite was strapped to the toy's back with masking tape. Natsu recognized with a groan, "Oh, no… It's a Rune Knight Lahar."

"Hey, what's going on?" Gray joined Natsu and the others on the desk, wanting to know what the fuss was about.

"Nothing that concerns you _spacemen_ ," Natsu said bitterly. "Just us _toys._ "

"I'd better take a look anyway," Gray grabbed the binoculars and looked through the lens. He gasped upon seeing Lahar strapped to the M-80. "Why is that guy strapped to some sort of explosive device?"

" _That's_ why: Takeshi," Natsu answered, redirecting Gray's view. Unknown to him, he moved the binoculars so that Gray was looking at Zeke himself.

"That dog?" Gray was confused. "Sure is a hairy fella."

"No, no, that's Zeke, you idiot!" Natsu readjusted the view. " **That** is Takeshi." The boy laughed hideously, having taken great delight in the torment and suffering he inflicted on that helpless toy.

Gray asked, "You mean that happy kid?"

Gajeel snorted, "He ain't no happy kid."

Elfman agreed, "He ain't a man, either. He's a monster."

Lisanna stated, "He tortures toys, just for fun!"

Gray put away the binoculars, "I take it you and he had a history?"

Natsu nodded sadly, "Yeah. And it's not a good one, either. A lot of good toys were lost. They didn't stand a chance against Takeshi." He lowered his eyes, "We even lost Lucy to him."

"Lucy?" Gray wondered. "Who's Lucy?"

"Lucy Heartfilia," Cana replied. "You know, the Celestial Treasure Hunter? She's one of the coolest dolls in the world."

Natsu explained, "She's one of Ken's toys, his second favorite toy next to me." He added with a glare towards Gray, "Well, I _was_ his favorite, until you stole the spotlight."

Gray asked, "What else do you know about her?"

"She's also…" Natsu began, unable to continue at first. Gray watched as the salmon-haired toy rested his head on his hand, shielding his eyes. "She's also…" His voice trembled, as he seemed to summon a terrible memory from his past. Finally, he concluded with a heavy sigh, the sparkle in his eyes giving a sorrowful glow. "…my girlfriend."

Gray's eyes widened upon hearing this revelation, and the group of toys bent their heads down with mournful looks. Alzack paid no attention as he kept the binoculars focused on Takeshi, who picked up and threw a cinderblock towards Lahar.

Gray asked in disbelief, "You had a girlfriend?"

Natsu narrated, "Ken received a _Lucy Heartfilia: Celestial Treasure Hunter_ doll as a Christmas present when he was three. I was there when she got unwrapped. The two of us met, talked to each other, went on some dates, and over time, we fell in love." A wide smile broke over his face, "Ah, Lucy. She's as beautiful as Mirajane and Erza combined, bless the manufacturer! She's always eager to go out on epic adventures, search for excitement, and seek out treasure, as per her nature as a treasure hunter. I would often come along with her to get my own taste of excitement. We had great adventures together. Her energetic and cheerful personality is the kind of catalyst that raises everyone's spirits."

Natsu's smile soon faded to a sorrowful look. He continued, "But it didn't last. About a year ago, Lucy saw a helpless toy about to get torn in half by Takeshi's lawn mowing machine. She can't stand it, so she leaped out the window. A few minutes later, the toy was out of Takeshi's yard. The rescue mission was a success! We expected Lucy to come back to our room. We waited for minutes, hours, days, weeks, months… and she never came back."

Gray gasped, "That's horrible…"

Erza added, "After waiting so long for Lucy's return, we assumed that she was taken prisoner by Takeshi in his house. We never heard of her ever since."

Cana shrugged, "Well, at least the big move's coming. We won't be seeing Takeshi again."

"Yeah. But Lucy's probably stuck in that house next door," Natsu replied musingly, his body trembling upon remembering the fateful day he lost Lucy to Takeshi. "I miss her. I really miss her. So much."

Elfman patted Natsu's back comfortingly, "There, there. Real men also mourn. You miss her, we miss her too."

Erza sniffled, "What a brave toy, working in the line of duty like that. Why must she be so bold?"

Touched by the emotional backstory, Gray's sympathy sparked into determination. He declared, "So, that kid's the reason why Natsu's girl was gone, huh? In that case, we're gonna do something about it." He stepped up onto the window ledge, "I'm going in!"

The toys, however, had different opinions about Takeshi. Mirajane grabbed Gray's arm and protested, "What are you doing? Get down from here!"

"I'm gonna teach that punk a lesson," Gray said heroically. "I'll save Natsu's girlfriend, save that trapped soldier, beat the tar outta Takeshi, and come back unharmed. I've been through a lot of dangers worse than this one."

At that moment, Natsu's sorrow was replaced with cruel amusement. He snorted, "Oh, sure. Go ahead. Freeze him with your scary ice magic." He pressed Gray's laser button, causing his hands to blink.

Gray pulled his arm away and glared, "Be careful with that! Somebody could get hurt!"

Meanwhile, Alzack witnessed Takeshi lighting the fuse of the M-80 attached to Lahar's back. "He's lighting it! He's lighting it!" He added with a horrified yell, " **HIT THE DIRT!** "

In response, the toys jumped away from the window.

 **BOOM!**

By the time the explosion erupted, dirt clouds and toy shrapnel— Lahar's remains— rained along the side of the Hirugashi house. Natsu, Gray, and the others peeked over the windowsill and saw, to their horror, a large black scorch mark from where Lahar stood.

"YES! He's gone! He's history!" Takeshi shouted victoriously, jumping up and down while Zeke resumed his barking.

Gray grimaced, "That sadistic freak. I should've stopped him."

Natsu smirked, "Gray, I would _love_ to see you try." He gestured to the backyard, where Takeshi cackled and danced around the scorch mark, "Of course, I'd love to see you as a crater."

"The sooner we move, the better," Mirajane said grimly.

"Yeah," Natsu agreed. "We're gonna miss Lucy, though."

Erza sighed, "She will always be remembered. With all our hearts, we pray that she is alive… somewhere."

But unknown to all, within the glass of a windowsill from Takeshi's house, two brown beautiful eyes stared with sorrow, the gazer praying that she would someday reunite with the one she loved most…


	6. An Unfortunate Accident

Time had passed, and only two days were left before the big move. The very next night would be the Hirugashis' last in their old home. Mrs. Hirugashi managed to find a buyer, and she, Ken, and Maka would be leaving for a new home to settle in. As such, she spent most of the day packing the stuff. Ken helped a little, but his mom sent him off to play after a while, opting to finish on her own.

"To infinity and beyond!" In Ken's soon-to-be former room, the boy was happily playing with Natsu and Gray. The room was full of boxes packaging most of his toys, some of them half-full. Mrs. Hirugashi opened the door and entered to find her son, jovial as usual.

"Oh, all this packing's getting me hungry," Mrs. Hirugashi sighed, feeling a bit queasy from all the work. "What do you say we have dinner at, uh, I don't know…" She paused to add more surprise to her suggestion, "Zodiac Planet?"

"Zodiac Planet?!" Ken reacted excitedly. "Oh, cool!" Zodiac Planet was one of the most popular fast food restaurant/arcades in town, and hearing his mom's announcement that they were going to eat there got him pumped up. Without another word, he tossed Natsu and Gray aside and ran out the door. The minute the door was closed, the two toys came alive, Gray just walking off casually while Natsu sat on his haunches.

"Go wash your hands, and I'll get Maka ready," Mrs. Hirugashi called from outside.

"Can I bring some toys?" Ken asked.

"You can bring _one_ toy," Mrs. Hirugashi said firmly. Natsu's ears perked at this.

"Just one?" Ken pouted.

"One toy?" Natsu wondered to himself. He glanced over his shoulder at Gray, who walked to the opposite end of the desk and looked over some tools. The pull-string Dragon Slayer doll knew without a doubt, that between the two of them, Ken would most likely take Gray with him. But maybe that wasn't the case, right? Out of curiosity, he picked up a Magic 8 ball next to him, while turning away to make sure Gray didn't hear.

"Will Ken pick me?" Natsu whispered hopefully. He shook the ball and tipped it over, desperate to know the answer. And then, the triangular oracle floated up to the surface, and displayed the words Natsu was dismayed to read.

" **DON'T COUNT ON IT?!** " Natsu shouted furiously, attracting the attention of Gajeel and Happy, who were playing cards on the floor. It's official: Ken's taking Gray with him to everything from now on. The hapless Dragon Slayer doll might as well get a price tag on himself and sell out. In frustration, Natsu tossed the 8 ball, which rolled across the desk and fell behind it with a loud thud.

The salmon-haired toy was suddenly interested on the noise from the back of the desk and peered down. He noticed that the 8 ball was wedged way down near the bottom, trapped into a crevice between the desk and the wall. Any other toy could end up stuck in the bottom if they were to fall behind the desk as well.

"Hmmm…" Looking down at the deep chasm, Natsu suddenly got an idea... a terrible one. If Ken couldn't find Gray, then he'd have no choice but to take him, instead. With a devious smirk on his face, he turned to look at Gray, who was humming to himself and foraging through Ken's pencil tray, looking for tools to repair his cardboard ship with. Then, he looked at the RC car Fireball Dragion resting on the desktop, pointing in the direction where the 8 ball fell, with the remote lying by his side.

With the first step of the plan complete, it's time for Phase 2: use the bait. After looking around to make sure nobody saw or heard him, Natsu ran over to Gray, pretending to be in a panic. He shouted, "Gray! Oh, Gray, Gray Fullbuster! Gray Fullbuster, thank goodness! We've got trouble!"

"Trouble?" Gray asked in alarm, looking around for any sign of danger. "Where?"

"Down there!" Natsu pointed to where the Magic 8 ball fell. "Just down there, a helpless toy, it's… it's trapped, Gray!"

"Then we've got no time to lose!" Gray ran off to see the situation at hand. He surveyed the dark surface for any sign of a 'trapped toy,' but to no avail. Of course, he didn't realize that Natsu had him right where he wanted him. Chuckling mischievously, Natsu picked up Dragion's remote and switched it on, his headlight eyes opening sleepily in response.

"I don't see anything," Gray scratched his head with a puzzled look.

"Oh, he's there. Just keep looking!" Natsu couldn't contain his mischief as he hit the forward button on the remote, steering Dragion straight for Gray.

"What kind of toy is—" Gray began, only to be interrupted by an approaching Dragion. He anticipated the ambush and dived out of the way in time, causing the RC car to smash into the base of a bulletin board instead. The impact forced the pushpins to fly out the board. Gray ducked as the pins landed all around him, sticking into the desk like arrows.

Gajeel, who had seen all this, let out a gasp. Natsu's triumphant grin faded, and his eyes grew wide with shock at the chaos he created. This was _not_ what he had planned at all.

The bulletin board fell off the wall, hitting a globe and causing it to roll off its axis. The globe rolled towards Gray, and he ran from it, only to slip on a pile of pencils. Luckily, he was able to jump onto the window ledge to avoid being flattened. The globe lumbered past Gray and struck a desk lamp, causing it to swing around. Natsu ducked in time, but Gray wasn't so lucky. He got hit by the lamp, letting out a shout as he went falling out the window.

" **GRAY!** " all of the toys screamed shockingly.

"Gray!" Natsu looked out the window to find no sign of Gray, who actually fell into a bush right below him. The other toys rushed over to the sill, concerned about the fate of their friend.

"I didn't see him in the driveway!" Erza cried. "He must've bounced into Takeshi's yard!"

"Oh, Gray…" Wendy said worriedly.

Natsu tried to sneak away while they were all distracted. He didn't mean for this to happen! He was just trying to push Gray behind the desk. This was clearly an accident... but it won't be easy to convince his friends about that.

Behind the crowd, Fireball Dragion made electric motor sounds, catching Wendy's attention. She called, "Hey, everyone! I think Dragion's trying to tell us something." The other toys turned from the window to Dragion, who kept on making motor sounds. Wendy leaned down closer to the RC car and asked, "What? What is it, boy?"

"He's sayin' that this was no accident," Gajeel translated with a frown.

"What do you mean?" Mirajane questioned.

"I mean, Ice Boy was pushed…" Gajeel explained, pausing to let this sink in. "…by Natsu!" He pointed a finger at Natsu, and the toys turned to the pull-string Dragon Slayer doll in question.

" **WHAT?!** " the toys exclaimed shockingly; some of them surprised, others angry. Natsu realized that the jig was up. He felt his face growing hot.

"Wait a minute. You don't think I meant to knock Gray out the window, do ya, Gajeel?!" Natsu argued, trying to make the best out a bad situation.

"That's _Black Steel_ Gajeel to you, you back-stabbin' murderer," Gajeel said indignantly.

"C'mon, guys, it was an accident," Natsu protested. "You gotta believe me."

"I believe you, Natsu," Erza said supportively. "You didn't mean Gray any harm."

"I always believed in you, Natsu," Happy agreed. "You're my best friend."

"So am I," Wendy added. "You'd never hurt anyone, especially Gray."

"We believe you too, Natsu, and so does Mira," Lisanna nodded. "Right, Big Brother Elf?"

Instead, Elfman crossed his arms and scoffed, "A real manly confession, but not enough to convince us. You knocked Gray out the window. Admit it!"

"I'm telling the truth!" Natsu shouted angrily. "It was an accident!"

"Dragion said it wasn't. You did that on purpose," Cana stated sternly.

Natsu tried to explain, "No, it wasn't—"

Laki scowled, "And I think we all know why he did it."

Kinana added, "He was jealous of Gray for all the attention he got from Ken!"

"Jealous?!" Natsu exclaimed. "Why would I be—"

Reedus confirmed, "That explains why you didn't want to be friends with him."

Alzack noted, "You just wanted to get rid of Gray so you can hog all the attention!"

His wife, Bisca Connell, joined him, "It was all an act, and we almost fell for it!"

Their daughter, Asuka, said angrily, "You're a very bad man!"

Laxus Dreyar agreed, "You're just a selfish, greedy, cruel lowlife."

Freed Justine chorused, "Deception! Disgrace!"

Evergreen frowned, "What a shame."

Bickslow pouted, "Agitator!"

Warren nodded, "That is unforgivable!"

Max added, "You coward!"

Natsu was heavily distressed. Most of the toys (except Happy, Wendy, Erza, Mirajane, and Lisanna) turned against him and accused him for a terrible crime he didn't commit! Could things possibly get any worse?

Suddenly, Mest Gryder popped out of the M.C. Troops' army bucket behind the salmon-haired toy. He yelled furiously, "Where is your honor, dirtbag?! You are an absolute disgrace! You don't deserve to… Hey!" Natsu cut him off by sealing the lid back on the bucket. He didn't want to deal with this right now.

"Couldn't handle Gray cuttin' in on your playtime, could ya, Natsu?" Gajeel scolded, closing in on Natsu. "You didn't want to face the fact that Gray just might be Ken's _new_ favorite toy, so you got rid of him." He drove Natsu against the edge of the desk, almost causing him to fall off. "Well, what if Ken starts playin' with _me_ even more, huh? You're gonna knock me out of the window, too?!"

Happy commented, "Wow, Gajeel. No wonder you've been jealous of Natsu, no matter how many times he tried to be nice to you."

Gajeel snapped at Happy, "Well, Natsu's the jealous one now, and any one of us could be next on his list. Just because you, Erza, Wendy, Mira, or Lisanna are loyal to him doesn't mean the rest of us are gullible enough to forgive him!"

"Never mind them!" Cana scoffed. "Let's not give that traitor the chance to try anything else!"

Laxus warned, "You turned on Gray— one of Ken's toys— one of us. You shouldn't have done that, punk, because now you're gonna deal with **US!** "

Natsu gulped nervously. He didn't like the sound of that.

The bucket lid popped open, and Mest shouted, "There he is, men! Grab him!" With a thunderous battle cry, the M.C. Troops pounced on Natsu, trying to restrain him. Most of the toys began to close in on their former friend, intent on making him pay for what he did to Gray.

"Let's string him up by his pull-string!" Gajeel said maliciously.

"I got dibs on his scarf!" Cana agreed.

"Will all of you stop it?!" Mirajane protested.

"Yeah! Leave him alone!" Happy shouted.

"He's done nothing wrong!" Wendy cried.

"Let him go!" Erza demanded. Their pleas fell on deaf ears, however.

"Tackle him!" Elfman shouted.

"No, no, no, no, no! Wait, wait, wait! I can explain everything!" Natsu screamed frantically. Laki and Warren grabbed both of his arms, Kinana wrapped her coils around his legs, and the rest of the toys were approaching the trapped pull-string doll, preparing to rip him apart. This could not end well…

But before Natsu could face what appeared to be his end, Ken's voice was heard outside, loud enough for the toys to hear. "I'll be right down, Mom. I've gotta get Gray."

"Retreat!" Mest signaled. The toys ran off and returned to their places, except for Natsu, who collapsed limply on the desk. The salmon-haired toy was spared… for now.

Ken entered the room and approached the desk, but got confused when he didn't see Gray. He could've sworn he left him here in the desk. Ducking to look under his bed, he called out, "Mom, do you know where Gray is?"

"No, I haven't seen him," Mrs. Hirugashi's voice responded.

"Pssst…" a voice said quietly. Natsu looked up slightly to see Reedus holding up a drawing of a noose he made, and Gajeel pointing at it with a sinister look. "You're dead meat!" he whispered threateningly. Natsu gulped silently; he prayed to himself that Ken would stop looking for Gray and take him to Zodiac Planet instead.

"Ken, I'm heading on the door!" Mrs. Hirugashi called out.

"But Mom, I can't find him," Ken worried.

"Well, honey, just grab some other toy. Now, come on!" Mrs. Hirugashi said, beginning to lose her patience.

"Okay," Ken sighed reluctantly. With no sign of Gray anywhere, he grabbed Natsu and walked out the door. The salmon-haired toy breathed a sigh of relief. He knew that he would get in big trouble on the way home, but at least he's safe in his owner's hands.

* * *

Outside, Ken exited the house as he headed towards the family van in the driveway with Natsu in tow. His mom was sitting in the driver's seat, with Maka next to her in the baby's seat.

"I couldn't find my Gray," Ken said. "I know I left him right there."

"Honey, I'm sure he's around. You'll find him," Mrs. Hirugashi assured.

Immediately, the bushes rustled, and Gray, who survived his fall from the window, peered out at the family. He glared furiously at Natsu, the culprit who forced him out of the room, as Ken climbed into the van with him.

"Oh, no, you don't!" Gray shouted. "You're not getting away THAT easily!" He raced out of the bush, and with a mighty leap, grabbed the rear fender of the van as it pulled out of the driveway, the Hirugashis unaware of his presence.

* * *

Meanwhile, a chain of miniature Vulcan toys dangled a considerable distance above the ground, being lowered down from the window by Erza, Cana, Mirajane, and Lisanna in an attempt to retrieve Gray from the bushes.

"It's too short!" Erza called. "We need more Vulcans!"

"There aren't any more!" Wendy explained. "That's the whole barrel." She tossed aside the empty plastic barrel and walked over the window. She called down, still thinking that Gray was trapped in the bushes, "Gray, the Vulcans aren't working! We'll come up with something else! Stay calm!" She sighed to herself, "Oh, where could he be?"


	7. Toys Left Stranded

That night, the Hirugashi family van pulled up to a nearby gas station to get some fuel before going to Zodiac Planet. "Can I help pump the gas?" Ken asked his mother, as he unbuckled his seat belt.

"Sure! I'll even let you drive," Mrs. Hirugashi nodded. The two exited the van, leaving Natsu behind in the back seat, with Maka sleeping up front in her car seat.

"Really?" Ken beamed with hope.

"Yeah. When you're sixteen," Mrs. Hirugashi smiled slyly.

"Very funny, Mom," Ken chuckled sarcastically at the joke.

With Ken and his mother out of the way, Natsu sprung to life and looked up at the top of the car, sighing heavily as he thought back to the incident. Except for Happy, Wendy, Erza, Mirajane, and Lisanna, the toys all hated him now. He was loathed, despised, blamed for shoving Gray away from the room. Did they really think that he could something so underhanded out of jealousy? Somehow, someway, Natsu had to do something to get out of the mess he brought upon himself. He grimaced, "Oh, great. How am I gonna convince those guys it was an accident?"

And just when things seemed to be hopeless, a figure appeared from the edge of the sun roof, illuminated by the gas station's lights. It was someone Natsu never thought he'd see again.

"Gray!" Natsu gasped. The space toy jumped into the car, landing on the back seat in front of the salmon-haired toy with a bug splattered against his helmet. Natsu laughed, genuinely overjoyed to see Gray again. Now he had a chance to redeem himself!

"Gray! Ha! You're alive!" The feeling obviously wasn't mutual, as Gray glared at him. If looks could kill, Natsu would've keeled over. He didn't notice, however, as the salmon-haired toy went on, "This is great! Oh, I'm saved. I'm saved! I thought you were a goner. I thought _I_ was a goner! But I'm saved! I'm really saved! Ken will find you here!" He removed the bug from the helmet and cleaned it up, "He'll take us back to the room, and then you can tell everyone that this was all just a big mistake. Huh? Right?" Natsu's smile disappeared when he noticed Gray's furious look. "Buddy?"

Gray was calm at first. He replied, "First of all, only a guy with white hair using Active Ice-Make Magic can call me _buddy._ And second, I just want to let you know that even though you tried to get rid of me, revenge isn't something we're too keen on in my planet."

"Oh. Well, that's good," Natsu confirmed.

"But we're not _on_ my planet…" Gray leaned forward and grabbed Natsu by the collar of his waistcoat, pulling him so that he could look him right in the eyes. "…are we?" His tone was dangerously quiet, and Natsu immediately knew that he was in trouble.

"No?" he whimpered.

With a fierce yell, Gray tackled Natsu, sending both of them off the seat and out the open side door of the van. The two hit the ground and rolled under the van, struggling until Gray kicked Natsu off him. The salmon-haired toy was sent flying into a tire, and it only took him a few seconds to pull himself up. It's on!

"Okay, c'mon! You wanna piece of me?!" Natsu growled. He charged at Gray, only for the space toy to punch him, causing his head to spin around. Letting out a furious scream, Natsu tackled Gray to the ground, opening his space helmet. He continuously punched Gray's face, cushioning every blow with squeaks. The space toy retaliated by closing his space helmet, which caught Natsu's hand in it, causing him to yell in pain.

Natsu uncontrollably pounded Gray's chest with his free hand, activating repeated samples of the space toy's voice simulator. " _Gray-Gray-Gray Fullbuster to the Rescue!_ " Gray managed to escape from under Natsu and gave him a full nelson. It would seem that the fight could go on forever, when…

"Next stop…" Mrs. Hirugashi announced.

"Zodiac Planet! Yeah!" Ken cheered.

And just like that, the van's doors slammed. And the vehicle drove off.

"Ken!" Natsu cried. He got off Gray and ran after the van, only to witness it pull out of the gas station and drive out of sight.

"Doesn't he… Doesn't he realize that I'm not there…?" Natsu asked himself. It was at that moment when the shocking realization struck his heart, his face contorted with despair. He realized a horror even worse than being less favored over another toy. Something that was meant to happen. " **I'M LOST!** " Crushed by the devastating tragedy, he trembled and fell to his knees, driven by depression. "I'm a lost toy!"

The pull-string Dragon Slayer doll sobbed, all alone with Gray as his only company. He was lost, stranded, left abandoned in the middle of nowhere by his owner, who was blissfully unaware of what happened to him. Ken failed to notice that Natsu was gone until it was too late. The sobbing soon turned into similarly anguished yelling, then howling, then frustrated screaming. He pounded his fists repeatedly onto the ground, futilely trying to break the solid beneath his feet, before he continued sobbing.

Things had been different before Gray's arrival, before the anger, before the sadness, before the jealousy, and before the accident. Now, things were even worse than before.

Natsu had become a lost toy.

Unaware of the salmon-haired toy's dilemma, Gray checked his surroundings and flipped open his wrist communicator. He spoke into it, "Gray Fullbuster Mission Log. The local Pyro and I seem to be at a huge refueling station of some sort…"

Hearing Gray's voice, Natsu stood up and turned to him. The despair quickly began to ferment into seething anger. His temper quickly picked up the anger and caressed it, fed it, and let it grow into an inferno. It was _his_ fault. _He_ was to blame! His life was ruined because of him!

" **YOU!** " Natsu roared, charging towards Gray. He no longer cared about returning the space toy to the room to prove his innocence. The only thing he wanted right now was to tear him apart.

Just then, a loud honking sound broke the silence. The two toys looked up in time to see a behemoth tanker truck pulling into the station. Gray dove off to the side, while Natsu collapsed right where he stood on the pavement. The truck roared over, about to crush the pull-string Dragon Slayer under its tires, only for it to come to a complete stop. One of the tires stopped just millimeters from Natsu's nose, much to his relief.

Natsu scooted away from the tire, moving back under the truck until he bumped into Gray, who continued speaking into his wrist communicator. "According to my navi-computer, the…"

"Shut up!" Natsu hissed at him. "Just shut up, you idiot!"

Closing his communicator, Gray groaned, "Natsu, this isn't the time to panic."

"This is the _perfect_ time to panic!" Natsu bellowed, completely ignoring the first part of Gray's statement. "I'm lost, Ken's gone, they're gonna move from their house in two days, and it's all your fault!"

Gray exclaimed angrily, "My fault?! If you hadn't pushed me out of the window in the first place…"

Natsu countered, "Oh, yeah?! Well, if _you_ hadn't shown up in your stupid little cardboard spaceship and taken away everything that was important to me…!"

"Don't talk to me about importance," Gray snapped. "The only thing you should be worried about is the security of this entire universe in jeopardy!"

" **WHAT?!** " Natsu blurted out in disbelief. "What are you talking about?!"

Gray walked over to the edge of the truck tower, staring at the night sky. He explained, "Right now, poised at the edge of the galaxy, the Tartaros Empire has been secretly building a weapon with the destructive capacity to wipe out an entire planet. My friends and I have information that reveals the weapon's only weakness." Turning to Natsu, he pointed a finger at him, "And **YOU,** my pink-haired friend, are responsible for delaying my rendezvous with Lamia Scale!"

Natsu couldn't believe his ears. That dumb toy really believed that he was the real Gray Fullbuster! His right eye twitched once. Twice.

" **YOU! ARE! A! TOOOOOOOOOYYYYYYYY!** " Natsu exploded at the top of his lungs in front of Gray's face. " **YOU'RE NOT THE REAL GRAY FULLBUSTER! YOU'RE A… YOU'RE AN ACTION FIGURE! YOU ARE A CHILD'S PLAYTHING!** "

"You're a sad, strange little man, and you have my pity," Gray said sarcastically. "See ya!" Giving Natsu a mock salute, he walked off.

"Oh, yeah? Well, good riddance, ya loony!" Natsu snorted, as he walked away in the opposite direction. He no longer cared if Gray came back with him or not. All that was important was getting back to Ken. He said mockingly to himself, "'Rendezvous with Lamia Scale.'"

At that moment, however, Natsu heard a screeching noise, followed by an unfamiliar voice. "Hey, gas dude!"

"You talkin' to me?" another voice chorused, which belonged to a gas attendant.

"Yeah, man, can you help me? Do you know where Yasogami Blvd. is?" the voice asked.

"Just a moment," the attendant replied.

Natsu looked to where the voices originated, and his face lightened upon seeing a truck. But not just any truck…

"Zodiac Planet…?" The vehicle turned out to be a Zodiac Planet delivery truck. If he could trace it back to the restaurant… Yes… He might still have a chance! "Ken!" Natsu cried excitedly as he took a step forward. He then stopped, realizing he forgot one important detail. "No… I can't show my face in that room without Gray. As much as I hate to admit it…" He added with a deep sigh, "…I need him."

Natsu rushed back under the tanker truck and called out, "Gray! Gray, come back!"

"Go away," Gray called back, still walking away.

Natsu shouted desperately, "No, Gray! You gotta come back! I…" He looked back at the Zodiac Planet truck, about to pull away at any moment, and with it, Natsu's one chance of reuniting with Ken. He then spotted a rocket decoration on top of the truck, and immediately, he got an idea. Natsu called back, "I found a spaceship!"

It worked. Gray stopped in his tracks and turned to look back at Natsu. The salmon-haired toy called again, "It's a spaceship, Gray!"

Gray grinned with interest. That's what Natsu was going for. Sucker!

* * *

A few seconds later, the two toys found themselves watching the delivery truck from an oilcan dispenser. The pizza deliverer called, "C'mon, man, hurry up. The pizzas are getting cold here."

"What a strange-looking ship," Gray commented. "You sure about this?"

"I'm positive, Snowman," Natsu nodded. "That's the ship we're looking for."

Gray asked, "Are you sure that space freighter's gonna return to its port of origin once it jettisons its food supply?"

Natsu smiled, "Uh-huh! And when we get there, we'll be able to find a way to transport you home."

Gray smirked, "This just keeps getting better and better. A mission's no fun if it's easy. C'mon, let's climb aboard!" He made a beeline for the passenger side door of the truck.

"No, wait! Gray! Stop!" Natsu yelped. The space toy couldn't hear him or wasn't listening, and the salmon-haired toy was forced to chase after him. "Let's get in the back. No one will see us there."

"I don't think that's a good idea," Gray replied. "There are no restraining harnesses in the cargo area. It's much safer in the cockpit." In a flash, he scaled the front tire, grabbed the rear view mirror, and swung himself up and into the cab.

Natsu whispered, "Gray, get outta there! Gray!"

"Okay, so that's two lefts, and then a right, huh?" the pizza deliverer asked the gas attendant.

"Yeah," the attendant replied.

"Okay, thanks for the directions," the pizza deliverer confirmed.

"Gray!" Natsu whispered loudly. Needless to say, the engine of the truck revved up. The pull-string Dragon Slayer doll ran to the back of the truck, scrambled up the bumper, and threw open the hatch to climb inside. However, the hatch slammed Natsu's rear, causing him to fall into the bed of the truck.

After recovering, Natsu peeked through the dividing window. He saw Gray hiding from the pizza driver's view by a stack of pizzas in their insulated covers. The space toy prudently fastened his safety belt, buckling himself in.

"'It's safer in the cockpit than in the cargo bay.' What an idiot!" Natsu said in annoyance.

The driver shifted into gear and hit the gas, propelling Natsu to the back of the truck. The pizza deliverer drove like a maniac, taking sharp turns at high speeds. Natsu was helplessly thrown around the truck, smacking into a lot of objects along the way. As the truck drove up a steep hill, the toolbox went sliding down, and Natsu barely had time to scream before being crushed by it.

The pull-string Dragon Slayer doll went through a painful, wild ride. Perhaps Gray had the right idea after all. Nevertheless, he just hoped that he'd still be in one piece by the time he got back to Ken.


	8. Zodiac Planet

**Author's Note:  
** _Sorry I had to post this late! I've got a problem with my laptop. Please, remain calm and enjoy this new chapter!_

* * *

After a long and painful ride (well, for Natsu, anyway), the delivery truck finally reached its destination— the popular fast food restaurant/arcade, Zodiac Planet. The truck barreled its way into the parking lot, and upon stopping, the pizza deliverer disembarked and entered the restaurant.

" _Next shuttle lift-off scheduled for T-minus 30 minutes and counting!_ " a voice speaker announced.

"Huh, that wasn't so bad," Gray remarked, unbuckling his seat belt. He peeked out the passenger window and beamed with excitement upon seeing a large decoration next to the restaurant, designed to look like a space rocket. He then shifted his view to a couple of customers heading to the entrance, guarded by two imposing animatronic robots based on the Gemini Twins, Gemi and Mini.

" _Piri-piri!_ " the robots boomed. " _Welcome to Zodiac Planet!_ " They parted their crossed spears, allowing the patrons to enter.

A female voice speaker announced, " _The white zone is for eating pizza…_ "

Gray perceived the restaurant as the perfect place to find a ship for his so-called 'mission', but he knew that entering won't be easy. He pried open the window between the cab and the truck bed and called, "Natsu! Natsu? Where are ya, buddy?"

The space toy saw the toolbox falling on its side, revealing a dazed Natsu, who peeled off and fell into a pile of trash. Gray said, "Oh, there you are. The entrance is heavily guarded, so we have to find a way to sneak inside." The answer came to him when Natsu pulled himself up with a cough, a Zodiac Planet cup over his head. Gray, thinking that Natsu came up with an idea to disguises themselves, nodded with an approving smile, "Great idea, Pyro. I like the way you're thinkin'."

Sometime later, more customers piled up at the entrance and were immediately greeted by the animatronic Gemini Twins. " _Piri-piri! Welcome to Zodiac Planet!_ " The front doors automatically swung open as the people passed through.

"Now!" Taking it as their cue, the two toys moved from behind a trash can and sped for the entrance. Natsu was hiding in the same cup from before, while Gray was in a burger container. "Hurry up, Natsu! The airlock is closing!" Gray whispered.

" _Saeko, party of five, your Celestial Spirit is now boarding…_ " the female voice speaker announced.

The two disguised toys made it inside, but froze immediately when a group of kids ran past, forcing the toys to pose as discarded trash. When the coast was clear, the toys resumed walking, with Gray bumping into Natsu by accident.

"Ouch! Watch where you're going!" Natsu snapped, using the straw as a periscope.

"Sorry," Gray apologized, mouthing with the burger box.

As soon as they got into a place between two long rows where no one could see them, Natsu and Gray ditched their disguises. The two got a better look of the scenery in front of them; it was more than enough to cause Gray's mouth to open in awe. Indeed, Zodiac Planet was a dream come true. The celestial-themed arena was an arcade, agape with a wide assortment of video games. Children laughed as they played the games, drink the soda, ate the food… just about anything they could think of.

Gray was immediately enamored. He breathed, "What a space port! Good work, Natsu. For once, you've actually done something worthwhile for me."

Natsu looked around, trying to see if he could find Ken anywhere. He saw one kid playing the Sagittarius Target Practice game, another one getting a can of soda, and a third one playing the Whack-a-Virgo game, but no Ken. Suddenly, a familiar voice was heard. "Mom, can I play _Regulus Adventure?_ Please, please, please?"

Natsu turned around to see Ken with Mrs. Hirugashi and Maka in her stroller. He cried happily, "Ken!" Now he could finally go home!

"Now we need to find a ship that's headed for Planet Tenrou—" Gray began.

"Wait a minute, Gray! This way!" Natsu grabbed Gray's wrist and hurried him down the video game corridor to where the Hirugashis went. "There's a very special ship. I just saw it!"

"Really? Does it have hyperdrive?" Gray asked hopefully.

"Hyper-active hyperdrive, and astro… uh, turf," Natsu nodded. He peeked out from behind a game, waiting for Ken, Maka, and Mrs. Hirugashi to approach. "C'mon, c'mon, that's it…"

"Where is it? I don't see any…" Gray stopped short when he caught sight of something. "Spaceship!" he gasped. The 'spaceship' Natsu mentioned was actually a crane game modeled to look like a spaceship ready to launch.

"Okay, Gray, get ready, and…" Natsu urged, not noticing Gray dashing off. "Okay, when I say go, we're gonna jump in the basket." He turned around, and was shocked to see Gray running to the crane game. "Gray!" It was too late, as the space toy leaped into the prize slot.

To make matters worse, the Hirugashis went right by him. Natsu growled in frustration, "I can't believe I had to risk my neck for that crazy spaceman!" He stopped over to the game, determined to find Gray and flip him the bird. However, he had to hide as some screaming kids passed by. This could take a little while.

* * *

Meanwhile, Gray climbed over the partition that divided the deposit slot from the prize toys. He leaped down and found himself in a pile of squeaker toys based on Nikora, the Canis Minor Constellation. They resemble short, stout, identical creatures with stubby tails and golden horn-like noses, each with different colors and facial appearances. The Nikora were surprised and excited upon seeing Gray entering their presence.

"A stranger," one of the Nikora identified.

"From the outside," added another Nikora.

"Ooooooh…" the rest of the Nikora marveled.

Gray straightened up and addressed the pile of squeaky toys, "Greetings! My name is Gray Fullbuster. I've come in peace."

Immediately, the Nikora all flocked around him like jabbering, excited children, as if they've seen a hero for the first time ever.

* * *

" _Before your journey to the Celestial Spirit World, re-energize yourself with a slice of Taurus Roasted Beef, now boarding at Counter 3!_ " the make voice speaker announced.

Back outside, Natsu crossed the aisle to the crane game and entered the prize slot. He clambered up the side of the deposit slot, finding Gray talking to the Nikora. "What was he doing?" he said to himself.

"This is an intergalactic emergency," Gray explained. "I need to commander your vessel to Planet Tenrou. Who's in charge here?"

"The Claw!" the Nikora answered as one, pointing upward to where a crane game claw dangled.

"The Claw is our master," one of the Nikora said.

"The Claw chooses who will go and who will stay," another Nikora added.

"This is ludicrous," Natsu groaned. Those horn-nosed freaks were as crazy as Gray was.

"Hey, bozo! You got a brain in there?"

A chill ran up Natsu's spine as he recognized the voice. By the time he turned around, his worst fears were realized.

"Ha-ha! Take that!" Takeshi Sakamoto, the Toy Torturer, stood on top of the Whack-a-Virgo game, stomping on some of the targets. The game timed out, and Takeshi hit it with his paddle before tossing it away and walking over to the crane game.

"Oh, no! Takeshi!" Natsu gasped in horror. He leaped off the partition and tackled Gray, pushing the two of them deep into the pile of Nikora. "Get down!"

Gray whispered, "What's gotten into you, Pyro? I was—"

Natsu hissed, " _You're_ the one who decided to climb into this—"

One of the Nikora shushed them and pointed upwards, "The Claw… it moves."

The toys looked up and saw the crane moving into position, thanks to Takeshi putting a quarter into the machine to play it. The crane hovered above the area where Natsu and Gray hid, lowered slowly and surely, and grabbed hold of the Nikora right on top of Gray.

"I have been chosen!" the Nikora squealed happily, carried upward by the crane. "Farewell, my friends. I go on to a better place." Unfortunately, the poor squeaker toy was blissfully unaware of the fate that awaited him as Takeshi's new toy.

"Gotcha," Takeshi grinned. As he dropped the Nikora toy into the prize slot, Gray's upper torso was exposed, forcing the space toy to freeze. The boy's eyes widened with complete surprise upon noticing Gray amidst the pile of Nikora. "A Gray Fullbuster?! No way!" Takeshi always wanted to add the greatest space action figure of all time to his collection of toys, but his parents were unable to buy one for him, considering it's very expensive. This must be his lucky day.

Natsu frantically looked around for a way to escape. He could _not_ let Gray get taken by a monster like Takeshi. Behind him, he saw a small repair door. Swimming through the Nikora towards the door, he grabbed hold of the locking latch and, after a few attempts, pried the door open.

At that moment, the shadow of the crane lined up over Gray. Activated by another quarter, the device lowered and grabbed Gray by the space helmet. Takeshi smirked, "Yes! Reel that baby in!"

"Gray!" Natsu shouted. He may not have liked Gray, but there was no way he could ever face the other toys _or_ Ken without him. He grabbed hold of Gray's feet, thus starting a tug-of-war with the space toy as the main prize. Natsu pulled with all of his strength, sinking Gray into the pile of Nikora out of Takeshi's view.

"Hey!" Takeshi snapped, pounding on the glass.

For a moment, it seemed that Natsu was winning as he was almost out the door with Gray. But before they could get out, some of the Nikora popped up.

"He has been chosen! He must go!" the Nikora cried jovially.

"Hey, what are you doing?!" Natsu screamed. The Nikora grabbed Natsu and Gray and pulled them back inside. "Stop it! Knock it off! Stop it, you freaks!"

The Nikora proclaimed, "He must go! Do not fight the Claw! He has been chosen!"

The crane finally managed to pull Gray up to the surface and into the air with Natsu holding his foot, the two dangling lifelessly in front of Takeshi.

"All right, double prizes!" Takeshi cheered. He never expected another different toy besides Gray within the Nikora pile. Then again, he's just another perfect addition to his collection. He dropped both toys into the hatch and reached down to claim his prizes.

The Toy Torturer looked from Natsu to Gray, a malicious smile on his face. "Let's go home and… play. Hee hee hee…"


	9. The Horrors of Takeshi's Room

Emerging out of the streets smothered in darkness, Takeshi skateboarded all the way from Zodiac Planet back to his house, listening to heavy metal music from his iPod the whole while. He leapt off his skateboard and headed up the front door with backpack in hand, housed with his new prizes: Natsu, Gray, and the Nikora squeaker toy. Takeshi hadn't bothered zipping his bag up, though, so the toys were able to peek out.

Gray noticed, "Yo, Pyro, I can see your house from here. You're almost home."

The Nikora said gleefully, "Nirvana is coming. The mystic portal awaits."

"Will you shut up?!" Natsu hissed, trying to hide his fear. "You guys don't get it, do you? Once we go into Takeshi's house, we _won't_ be coming out!"

Takeshi opened the door to reveal Zeke, who immediately greeted the toys by barking viciously. He could pick up the scent of any toy nearby, and was eager to get a piece of them.

"Whoa, Zeke! Hey, boy!" Takeshi calmed Zeke down, and the dog begrudgingly obeyed. "Sit. Good boy. Hey, I've got somethin' for ya, boy."

"Freeze!" Natsu whispered in alarm, and all the toys went stiff as Takeshi reached inside his bag. His fingers closed around the Nikora, and he pulled him out and placed him sideways along Zeke's snout. The dog's mouth twitched ever so slightly, anxiously wanting to tear apart the poor toy.

"Ready… set… NOW!" Takeshi signaled. In one swift motion, Zeke flipped the Nikora and caught him in his mouth, rabidly shaking the toy back and forth. From inside Takeshi's backpack, Natsu and Gray cringed in horror at the action too horrible and gruesome to describe for a toy.

"Asuka!" Takeshi called out with a loud shout. "Hey, Asuka!"

Natsu and Gray glanced up to see Asuka Sakamoto, Takeshi's little sister, coming into the living room with a doll of Lulu in hand. In contrast to her older brother, who was mean and vicious, she was much nicer, and perhaps one of the most sane people in the Sakamoto household.

"What?" Asuka responded to her monster of a brother.

"Did I get my package in the mail?" Takeshi asked.

"I dunno," Asuka shrugged.

"What do you mean, 'you don't know?'" Takeshi asked incredulously.

"I. Don't. Know," Asuka answered insistently.

His little sister was being very unhelpful, so Takeshi immediately came up with a plan for revenge. He cried mockingly, "Oh no, Asuka!"

Asuka asked, "What?"

"Look, Lulu!" Takeshi grabbed the aforementioned toy away from his sister.

Asuka yelled, "Hey!"

Takeshi barely hid the smirk in his voice, "She's sick!"

"No, she's not!" Asuka protested, knowing her brother's twisted games all too well. If torturing his own toys wasn't enough, Takeshi did the same thing to Asuka's. She tried to stop her brother from destroying or mutilating her toys many times, but failed, and she kept on screaming and demanding him to stop.

"I have to perform one of my operations!" Takeshi laughed, ignoring Asuka's continued protests as he bolted upstairs.

Natsu's eyes widened, realizing where Takeshi was heading to. He shivered, "Not Takeshi's room. Not there…"

"Takeshi, give her back!" Asuka shouted. "Takeshi! TAKESHI!" Takeshi gripped the door to his bedroom, entered, and slammed the door in his sister's face. Asuka demanded, furiously pounding her fists against the door, "Give me back Lulu! I'm telling mom!"

Tossing his backpack on the bed, Takeshi walked over to a makeshift workbench, deciding to play a game of 'doctor' in a much sadistic way. He said to himself in a faux voice, "Oh, no! We have a sick patient here, nurse! Prepare the O.R., stat!" With a sly chuckle, he clicked on a bare light bulb dangling from above his 'operating table.' Natsu and Gray were forced to watch in open-mouthed horror from the safety of the backpack.

Takeshi placed the Lulu doll's head in a vise and spun the handle, tightening the hold. He continued, talking to no one in particular, "Patient is… prepped." He pulled out a tool box and put on a surgical mask, "No one's ever attempted a double-bypass brain transplant before." From a nearby crate, he grabbed a toy Wyvern, "Now, for the tricky part: pliers!"

Gray commented, "I don't believe that kid's ever been to medical school."

Takeshi filled around with his 'patient' for a few seconds. Coming to a stop, he said in a higher voice, obviously pleased with his work, "Doctor, you've done it!" Natsu and Gray ducked out of sight as Takeshi walked to the door. He opened it to reveal a worried Asuka. "Asuka, Lulu's all better now."

The boy presented Asuka her toy— except that Lulu's head had been replaced by the Wyvern's! She screamed at the sight of the monstrosity and bolted down the hallway. "MOM! MOM!"

"She's lying!" Takeshi shouted. "Whatever she says, it's not true!" Throwing the toy aside, he ran outside, slamming the door on the way out.

Once Takeshi was gone, Natsu and Gray peered out of the backpack at their new surroundings. First, they looked at the Lulu/Wyvern hybrid, whose head popped off when Takeshi tossed it to the floor. They looked around the rest of the room, Natsu's breathing shallow. A poster of a famous death metal band hung on the wall, the melted remains of a doll poked out of a waffle-making machine on a drawer, and a doll's head and few other parts floated in a lava lamp. Truly, the room was every toy's worst nightmare. This is hell. _Toy_ hell.

"We're gonna die…" Natsu whimpered. "I'm outta here!" He bolted out of the bag, ran across the bed, and leapt to a desk attached to a wall. He grabbed the knob and tried to turn it, but it didn't move.

"Locked!" Natsu said, letting go of the knob and dropping to the floor. "There's gotta be another way outta here."

Just then, the sound of something rolling across the floor caught his attention. Natsu's head snapped up to see a yo-yo rolling across the floor from behind a box, before it fell on its side. Spooked, he grabbed a pencil from the floor, brandishing it like a weapon.

Suddenly, the pull-string Dragon Slayer doll whipped around when a mysterious shadow passed him by. "Uh, Gray? Was that you?" he asked worriedly. Natsu hurriedly traded his pencil for a flashlight. " _Better to see what we're up against,_ " he thought.

Another unfamiliar sound was heard from under the bed. Whipping the flashlight around, Natsu turned it on and shined the beam in the direction of the noise, illuminating…

…the head of a baby girl doll. The salmon-haired toy sighed in relief, thinking that the toy's face seemed to be smiling with glowing eyes.

"Oh, hey! Hi there, little fella," Natsu said kindly. "Come out here. Do you know a way outta here?"

The baby doll moved out of the bed's underside, and Natsu saw her for what she truly was— the toy may have the baby's head, but it was attached to a spider-like body made of erector set pieces. Her name was Babyface, and she was one of the Mutant Toys: normal toys crafted into experiments mixed with parts of other toys, another result of Takeshi's machinations.

Natsu gasped in absolute horror at the sight of this… this… _abomination!_ Babyface extended her legs and rose up taller than the salmon-haired toy, as if she wanted to greet him. Natsu, however, was scared speechless.

Soon, more mutant toys like Babyface emerged from the shadows— a toy fishing pole with the legs of Karen Lilica named Lilica Legs, a Jack-in-the-Box with a rubber hand named Hand-in-the-Box, a Totomaru torso attached to a skateboard named RollerMaru, a wind-up frog with wheels instead of legs named Keroro, and an Aria head attached to a roller named Ariawheel. Ariawheel turned to Natsu and turned off the flashlight.

Finally, Natsu couldn't take it anymore. He couldn't stop himself from letting out a horrified scream. He jumped up to the bed, hiding behind Gray. Natsu stammered in terror, "G-G-G-G-G-G-G-G-Gray!"

Natsu and Gray watched as the Mutant Toys approached the Wyvern's head and Lulu's body. They grabbed both parts, and more Mutant Toys grabbed the Wyvern's body and Lulu's head from out of the vise.

"Suffering subplots! They're cannibals! They eat people for food!" Gray breathed. Natsu retreated into the backpack, trying to keep himself from having a meltdown. He always knew that Takeshi was a psycho, but now, after being in his room and seeing the monsters he created from mutilating toys… he was really beginning to miss Ken and everyone in his room.

Gray regrouped with Natsu and pressed a voice simulator button on his chest. He spoke into it, "Mayday, mayday! Come in, Lamia Scale! I need backup! Send reinforcements! Lamia Scale, do you copy?" No response. Gray, not taking any chances, adjusted his hands and emitted a short blip. He said, "We're just gonna have to hold out. Until then, leave the jerks to me. If any of those _things_ head our way, I'll turn them into ice sculptures."

"Oh, great. Just great," Natsu groaned sarcastically. "If anyone attacks us, we can _blink_ 'em to death."

"Blink who to death?" a female voice echoed from out of nowhere. Surprised by the sudden tone, Natsu and Gray jumped out of the bag and got into defensive stances.

"Show yourself!" Gray demanded. "I'd turn back if I were you, unless you want an **Ice-Make Hammer** on your face!"

"Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!" the female voice chuckled. "For a _Gray Fullbuster: Space Hero_ toy, you've got a lot of stuff. Same goes for the other guy wearing a scarf. By the way, I've done my homework on you, salmon boy. You're a _Natsu Dragneel_ , aren't you? A hand-me-down Dragon Slayer doll based on the main character of a TV anime show back in the 90's?"

Natsu questioned, "Who are you? And how did you…?"

The two toys turned around to see an unexpected guest in front of them: a young woman dressed in an elegant, full-body hooded cloak which only left small portions of her body exposed, including her mouth.

"Who the heck are you?" Gray asked.

"I'm a simple girl in search of adventure," the female toy introduced herself. "Welcome to the Toy Underworld, boys. You're inside the room of the most sadistic toy killer of all time, Takeshi Sakamoto."

Gray nodded, "Yeah, we know who he is. We've seen him kill that soldier with dynamite. What's his name again? Lahar?"

"Are you one of those monsters we saw below?" Natsu asked suspiciously, wondering if the mysterious toy was one of the Mutant Toys.

The female toy chuckled, "No, silly. I'm just like you. I used to have an owner, but I got myself trapped in this room, same as you. Despite overwhelming odds stacked against me, with all of Takeshi's methods of torture and mutilation, I survived. Every torture lesson, every painful tactic… it was all a walk in the park!"

Gray remarked, "You've got guts. For a lady, you're tough."

"I'm more than tough," the female toy smirked. "I'm as tough as a rabbit in the middle of July."

Natsu cocked an eyebrow, "Let me get this straight. You're the only one who survived Takeshi?"

"Uh-huh," the female toy nodded. "Some toys call me the 'Action Girl' because of my unparalleled courage, a theme that fits my adventurous personality. I was never afraid of Takeshi, no matter how horrifying his methods get." She added with a giggle, "I bet the so-called Toy Torturer's sucking his thumb right now."

"Does that mean you can get us outta here?" Natsu asked hopefully.

The female toy responded, "I could take you downstairs, but Takeshi's mangy mutt kept blocking my path. Trust me, I've tried many times. But as long as Zeke's here, we're never getting out."

Gray crossed his arms, "We're trapped like mice in a cage."

"This stinks!" Natsu groaned despairingly. "I'm stuck in the room of the most evil kid in the world with a nutjob, a bunch of cannibals, and a girl in a cloak without a name! What's gonna happen to us next? Are we're gonna get blown up? Melted? Turned into another cannibal like them? Spicy meatballs, I don't know the possibilities! Either way, we're as good as dead!"

"Spicy meatballs, huh? That's funny, because you used to say that whenever you're surprised," the female toy stated. She added with a sigh, "You never changed at all, Natsu. I mean, come on! You honestly don't know who this is?"

"Huh?" Natsu raised an eyebrow.

"It's me, Nat!" the female toy giggled. And with that, she removed the cloak completely, revealing her full appearance: a doll based on a 17-year old girl with long blonde hair tied in two ponytails, wearing a blue and white bra, a blue sleeveless jacket, two blue sleeves wrapped below her shoulders, a black skirt with a white belt around it, an extendable toy whip attached to the white belt, black long stockings, and brown boots.

"L-L-L-L-L-L-Lu…. Lu… Lu… Lu… Lu…" Natsu's voice trembled. He was heavily shocked to have seen the face of someone he hadn't seen in a long time. The face of something he missed so much, someone he knew very well…

"Lu…?" She placed her hands on her hips, giving a playful smile.

" **LUUUUUUCCCYYYYY!** " Natsu screamed at the top of his lungs, none of the Mutant Toys hearing his voice. " **I'VE MISSED YOU SO MUCH!** "

" **NATSU!** " Lucy cried happily, overwhelmed by her own emotions. "I've missed you, too!"

Unable to contain their happiness and joy any longer, the two leaped and crushed each other with a hug. They couldn't help but let their emotions of anxiety and doubt overflow, their arms squeezing tightly. It was only moments ago that Lucy's cloaked attire was a symbol of a lost person in the middle of the dark, but now… it was a shining beacon of hope, comfort, and love.

Natsu reunited with his girlfriend, Lucy Heartfilia the Celestial Treasure Hunter doll, long thought to have been lost forever.

Gray could only watch with a grin.

* * *

A few minutes later, Takeshi fell asleep in his bed, and Natsu, Lucy, and Gray moved to a place where he or any of the Mutant Toys couldn't find their presence. They discussed everything that transpired, about Lucy's disappearance, Gray's appearance, the easy and tough times, the Hirugashi family planning to move to a new house… as well as what happened in Zodiac Planet.

"…and that's what happened," Natsu concluded the story with a sigh.

"Wow… It sounds like you've been through a lot recently," Lucy nodded.

Natsu admitted, "Yeah. When you disappeared, trying to save that helpless toy from Takeshi's yard, I thought you were gone. I didn't know what to do without you, but now…" He couldn't find the right words to say, "Oh, I'm so glad to see you again, Lucy. I missed you big time."

Lucy smiled, "I missed you too, Natsu. Over the past nine months, I can't stop thinking about you. You, Happy, Wendy, Erza, all the other toys…" She paused to let it sink in, "…Ken. Every time I look out the window, I think about them, every day."

Gray said, "The others said you've been stuck in here for a long time."

"What happened to you?" Natsu asked, feeling a bit hurt. "You should've come back and told us that you're okay."

"Yeah, it's very complicated," Lucy confessed. "After I saved that toy moments before he got mashed to bits by Takeshi's lawn mowing machine, I was on my way home. That is, until Zeke picked up my scent. He chased me and brought me over to Takeshi. Eventually, the Toy Torturer proceeded to rip the tar outta me. I was able to survive, and one by one, I found the pieces of my body and fixed myself up. I was taught to show no pain, and I endured it proudly. Without fear."

Natsu sniffled in admiration, "What a brave toy, working in the line of duty like that. Why must you be so bold?"

Gray pointed out, "Erza used to say that."

"Like I said, my courage is unparalleled," Lucy stated proudly. "What do you expect from an action doll who survived in a house where a kid mutilates toys for personal gain? Lesson #1: a Celestial Treasure Hunter knows no fear! No matter how dangerous the situation, a hunter always rises to the challenge!"

Natsu chuckled, "You haven't changed at all, Lu. That's what I'd expect from my girl, a Celestial Treasure Hunter."

"So, how's Levy?" Lucy asked. "Was she doing okay? She's my best friend, my favorite Speak & Spell girl."

Natsu answered with a smile, "Her seminars were jam packed. She's doing great. Like all the other toys, she misses you, too."

"So, now that Natsu's reunited with her girl, what should we do next?" Gray asked.

Lucy replied, "Natsu said we've got less than two days before the big move, right? We've got plenty of hours to think of a strategy. Me, you, and Natsu will make a great team. Together, we'll go back to Ken's house, and we're home free!"

"She's right," Gray nodded. "Section 6, Subsection Gamma in the Space Hero Mission Manual clearly states that you need backup in every hazardous situation."

"I know you've been jealous of Gray the first time you met him, but think about it," Lucy suggested to Natsu. "If we work together, we can do anything."

"You have a point there," Natsu agreed. "Without Gray, the others would never forgive me. After what happened earlier…"

Lucy chuckled, "That little _accident_ of yours? You gotta move on and forget about the past. You gotta focus on today. But for now, let's rest. We've got a lot of catching up to do."

Gray added, "Communications with Lamia Scale will have to wait."

"Nothing like a good night's sleep to lift your spirit," Lucy nodded. She turned to Natsu with grin, "Just like old times?"

Natsu chuckled slyly, "Yeah, just like old times."

"Let's have a reunion sleepover, right here…" Lucy whispered seductively. With that, the two wrapped their arms around each other, and their lips did not await entry. Each mouth parted to encompass the other, saving the flavor of their lips. As they kept on kissing, they lost balance and fell on the ground, their hands caressing each other's body parts. Gray departed from Natsu and Lucy, wanting to give the two lovebirds some privacy. He didn't want to ruin the touching moment.

Still, the three toys could not shake the feeling that they're still trapped in Takeshi's room. They would be lucky if they made it through the night.

* * *

Next door, the rest of Ken's toys hadn't given on their search for Gray. Happy, Wendy, Mirajane, and Lisanna were using a flashlight to look around outside.

A bush rustled, and Lisanna settled the light on it. She cried, "Hey, guys! I think I found him!" She called out, "Gray! Is that you?!" The bush's response was the screech of a cat.

Happy snapped, "Whiskers! Will you get outta here?! You're interfering with the search and rescue!"

"Look, they're home," Wendy whispered, gesturing to a certain family van pulling up to the garage. The rest of the toys gathered to listen as Ken and Mrs. Hirugashi came out, helping Maka out of her baby seat.

Ken asked, "Mom, have you see Natsu?"

Mrs. Hirugashi asked, "When was the last time you left him?"

Ken answered, "Right here in the van."

Mrs. Hirugashi sighed, "Oh, I'm sure he's there. You're just not looking hard enough."

"He's not here, Mom," Ken said worriedly. "Natsu's _gone._ "

Up in the window, the toys were shocked of the troublesome news. Mirajane gasped, "Natsu's gone?"

Lisanna whispered, "He disappeared?"

Happy shook his head in disbelief, "I can't believe it."

Wendy asked sadly, "How could this happen?"

Cana scoffed, "Well, whadaya know? The weasel ran away."

Gajeel smirked, "See? I told ya he was guilty."

Laxus frowned, "Who would've thought he'd pull off somethin' like that?" He walked off after them, leaving Happy, Wendy, Mirajane, and Lisanna behind. They still refused to believe that Natsu knocked Gray out the window on purpose. Something must've happened to them.

Wendy sighed sadly, "I just hope he's okay."

Happy nodded, "So did I."


	10. The Awful Truth

The next morning, Natsu learned firsthand what _playtime_ with Takeshi Sakamoto was like. It was just another day in toy hell, a prison that was run by an insane warren. Indeed, Takeshi was playing another one of his nasty games, and today's playtime involved him being the interrogator of a helpless rebel who fought against his undisputed regime. And that rebel was a certain terrified Dragon Slayer doll.

"Oh, a survivor!" Takeshi beamed. "Where's the rebel base?! Talk!" He tossed Natsu across the room. Naturally, he didn't move, though he was screaming inside. Takeshi complimented, "I can see your will is strong." He walked over to his window and pulled up the blinds, letting the sunlight in, "Well, we have ways of making you talk."

The Toy Torturer picked up a magnifying glass that was sitting on his windowsill and leaned over the pull-string Dragon Slayer. He held the glass over, focusing a beam of sunlight, and a bright white dot started to smolder on Natsu's forehead. "Where are your rebel friends now?" Takeshi laughed maliciously.

His fun was cut short when his mother called from downstairs, "Takeshi! Your takuyaki is ready!"

"All right!" Takeshi cheered. He tossed the magnifying glass away and ran out of the room. And suddenly, there was silence.

" **AAAAAAAAAAGGGGGHHH! I'VE GOT A LITERAL FIRE IN MY FOREHEAD!** " The silence was broken when Natsu popped up, letting out a high-pitched painful scream at the burn on his forehead. Running over to a bowl of half-eaten cereal with milk nearby, he dunked his head in, extinguishing the burn.

Gray walked over with two suction darts on his body from an earlier target practice game with Takeshi. He pulled off one from his space helmet, and another from his butt. "I've dodged a lot of bullets from enemy troops, but this kid's got more accuracy than anyone in the galaxy could count," Gray commented, before pulling Natsu out of the cereal bowl.

"Very colorful, spaceman. Thank the lucky stars it's just a warm-up before the real action happens," Lucy noted. Yawning, she stretched her arms as she joined Natsu and Gray. "Good morning, campers! Did you sleep well?"

Natsu moaned, "I had a nightmare. A nightmare of Takeshi ripping our bodies apart like cotton candy."

"Even so, you've got guts," Gray smirked, clapping him on the back. "A lesser man would've spilled his guts under that kind of torture."

"You've learned from the bravest toy in the Toy Underworld. I'm impressed," Lucy admired, placing a hand around Natsu's shoulder. "Celestial Treasure Hunter Lesson #42: What doesn't kill you makes you stronger."

"I am a slow learner, aren't I?" Natsu replied. He picked up a cereal spoon nearby and looked at his reflection, spotting the burn mark on his forehead. "Oh, great."

"You've got a burn mark from Takeshi's magnifying glass, didn't you?" Lucy asked. "If only we had those clean cotton rolls Ken's mom had back home, we'd wipe the mark away, like it never happened. Bad news is, Takeshi's mom don't have any of these."

"I sure hope this isn't permanent," Natsu rubbed his burn mark. "I look like an Indian guy."

"Still no word from Lamia Scale," Gray frowned, checking his wrist communicator. "We can't be that far from the spaceport. What's its name again?"

Lucy answered, "Zodiac Planet."

"Yeah, that's it," Gray nodded. "If we can go back to Zodiac Planet, I could restore my communications with Lamia Scale. If all else fails, we could just find another spaceship."

"FYI, Mr. Ice-Maker, Zodiac Planet is twenty miles from here," Lucy stated. "Do you really have such a nerve to get miles away from here?"

Gray replied firmly, "If that's what it takes to ensure intergalactic security, yes."

"That's not gonna happen," Lucy said adamantly. "We agreed to make a break for Ken's house, not go back to a fast food restaurant full of imaginary spaceships that can't even fly."

Gray scoffed, "I'm not an idiot, Lucy. I know a spaceport where I see it. Zodiac Planet is a _real_ spaceport. Where there's a spaceport, there's a spaceship. And spaceships _can_ fly."

Lucy insisted, "Will you stop pretending and be practical for once? Get your head out of the stars and into Planet Earth, where it belongs."

Gray shook his head, "I'm not pretending, Lucy. I _am_ practical. And my home planet's name is Magnolia."

" _This_ planet is your home!" Lucy said sternly. "You should stop living in your imaginary world and start living in real life! This isn't the time to go to outer space. It's time to go _home._ To Ken's house. Where we toys belong."

Gray just looked at her skeptically. He replied, "But this isn't my planet."

Lucy groaned to herself, "When he is ever gonna learn that he's not a real Space Hero? That's the problem with action figures these days. They've been programmed to…"

"The door!" Natsu's eyes widened upon noticing something from the spoon's reflection. He cried excitedly, "Guys, it's open! We're free!"

Gray argued, "Natsu, we don't even know what's out there!"

Natsu cheered, "I'll tell you what's out there! FREEDOM! We're finally gonna get home!" He ran to the open door.

Lucy protested, "No! Natsu, wait! Come back! Zeke's outside—"

"We're finally fr— **AAAAAGGGGHHHHH!** " Natsu stopped in his tracks and screamed in horror when the Mutant Toys from last night blocked the path to the doorway. He hid behind Gray, who got into a defensive stance.

Lucy, on the other hand, didn't show any signs of fear, anger, or offensive behavior against the Mutant Toys. She was actually smiling at them! But why? She greeted, "Hey, guys! Enjoyed a good night's rest, too?" She turned to Natsu and Gray with a chuckle, "Oh, I haven't told you about the Mutant Toys. They're—"

However, Natsu ignored Lucy kept on shivering behind Gray. "They're gonna eat us! Do something, quick!"

"Stand back! **Ice-Make: Lance!** " Gray positioned his hands and fired his laser light at the Mutant Toys, intending to freeze them solid. Naturally, nothing happened, except the little blue beam that flicked against Babyface's head. The Mutant Toys looked at each other confusedly, and Lucy just stared with a bewildered expression.

"What?!" Gray blinked in surprise, looking at his hands. "Why isn't my magic working?! I replenished my Magic Energy before I left! It should be good for—"

Lucy tried to interrupt, "Will you two just listen to—"

"No, you idiot! You're a toy!" Natsu yelled, shaking Gray's body. "Use your karate chop action!" He pressed a large button on the space toy's back, involuntarily making his arm chop up and down.

Lucy screamed, "Natsu! What're you doing?!"

Gray yelled, "Hey, what's going on? Why is my arm moving?! Stop that!"

Natsu continued forward, using Gray as a shield while repeatedly pressing the Karate Chop Action button, fending off the Mutant Toys with the space toy's chopping arm. Natsu shouted, "Get away! Back! Back, you freaks! Back!"

The salmon-haired circled around the Mutant Toys to the doorway. Gray protested, "Natsu, stop it!"

"Sorry, guys, but dinner's cancelled!" Natsu smirked triumphantly. He dropped Gray and ran out the door, leaving Lucy and the Mutant Toys behind.

Lucy smacked her forehead and irritation, "Aw, geez! Where are we, in Crazy Town?! I'm paired up with a delusional space toy and a scatterbrained hand-me-down Dragon Slayer doll! Somebody's gotta knock some sense into them!" She turned to the Mutant Toys with an apologetic look, "Sorry about that, guys. My friends, they're just a little bit… overactive." She ran out the door as well.

* * *

"There's no place like home. There's no place like home." Natsu kept repeating those words with much pulsing excitement as he raced down the hallway. All he had to do was to dodge Takeshi, go outside, and he's home free! Of course, he still needed Gray to prove his innocence, but still… "There's no place like home!" He stopped at the stairs and jumped a few steps down. For a moment, it appeared that nothing could stop him now.

But it was short lived. With a gasp, Natsu confronted a horrible sight in the middle of the stairs: Zeke was asleep, snoring loudly. The pull-string Dragon Slayer took a couple of steps backwards, desperate not to wake the sleeping beast. Cautiously, he edged his way upstairs, finally reaching the top of the stairs. Suddenly, two hands clapped over his mouth, pulling him against the wall. It was Lucy and Gray, who pulled Natsu to safety and covered his mouth to keep Zeke from hearing him.

Lucy hissed, "Did you forget that Zeke's still outside in the hallway?!"

Natsu pulled Lucy and Gray's hands away. Catching his breath, he quickly realized where he was. "Oh… Oh, yeah. Yeah. I forgot about that." He added with a nervous chuckle, "Sorry."

"Don't you 'sorry' me, Natsu! What's wrong with you?!" Lucy scolded quietly. "You could've been killed! I was really scared of what Zeke might do to you! And you left us behind! You should've taken us with you!"

Natsu protested, "I said I was sorry!"

Gray groaned, "Geez, another stunt like that, Pyro, and you're gonna get us all killed."

Natsu argued, "Hey, I wasn't trying to—" He was cut short when Lucy shushed him.

Gray checked down the stairs, seeing Zeke still asleep while unaware of their presence. Once he made sure the coast was clear, he darted to the other end of the hallway, and motioned Natsu and Lucy to follow him. The Celestial Treasure Hunter doll walked silently and slowly, while the pull-string Dragon Slayer, not as confident as Gray, dropped to his knees and crawled on all fours across the floor.

Unexpectedly, Natsu's pull-string ring got caught up on the railing. By the time he crept up, the string was pulled farther and farther, until with a snap, it yanked off and flew back. And then…

" ** _YAHOO!_** _I'm all fired up! C'mon, guys! We gotta get this dragon a ridin'!_ " Much to the toys' alarm, Natsu's voice box screamed out the recorded message. In response, Zeke's eyes snapped open, and with a growl, he marched up the stairs.

"Split up!" Gray alerted. Natsu and Lucy didn't need to be told twice, as the three toys ran to keep themselves out of Zeke's sight. Along the way, two doors were open at the other end of the hallway. Gray dove behind one, while Natsu and Lucy jumped into a closet. The salmon-haired toy slammed the door shut just as Zeke reached the top of the stairs.

Meanwhile, Gray peered from the other door to see Zeke sniffling and growling at the closet. Sensing another hint of movement behind him, the bulldog whipped around and started to close in. He poked his head inside, trying to pick up any suspicious activity. Luck was on Gray's side, however, as all Zeke saw inside was Takeshi's father, snoring in front of the TV. With one final growl, the bulldog walked away.

Gray sighed in relief, "Phew! That was close. I wonder how Natsu and Lucy were holding up?"

* * *

Back in the closet, Natsu and Lucy were talking to each other, doing their best to volume their voices down to avoid Zeke's ears. Lucy gritted her teeth, "Words can't express how much I'm angry with you, Natsu."

Natsu reasoned, "I was just trying to find a way outta here."

"Without me!" Lucy pointed out angrily. "If you hadn't listened to me, Zeke would've ripped the stuffing outta you. That bulldog is no joke; he's a toy killer, much like Takeshi. He's a living reminder that if you mess with the dog, you get the teeth and the paws. We probably would've been chowder and sent home in boxes for the landfill! And thanks to **YOU…** " She added with a furious yell, pointing a finger at Natsu, "…that stupid dog's attention was drawn! You should've watched where your pull-string was going, you salmon-haired moron! You almost killed us all!"

Impacted by the accusation, Natsu felt very embarrassed. He admitted with a deep sigh, "You're right. I'm so sorry, Lucy. It's all my fault. We could've been ripped to shreds if it wasn't for that dumb pull-string of mine."

Lucy understood Natsu's guilt and gave a comforting smile, "It's okay, Natsu. I'm the one who should be sorry. Besides, I brought you into this mess. I should've told you the full story of my experiences in this house." She then gave him a warm hug, "I should've prepared you for the dangers ahead."

Natsu smiled and hugged back, "Oh, Lu. You're so forgiving. That's why I love you."

Lucy sighed affectionately, "I love you, too."

Natsu asked, "Hey, how Gray's holding up?"

Lucy shrugged, "Oh, he's probably gonna run into some random commercial about Lamia Scale or something." She couldn't be more wrong.

* * *

"The coast is clear," Gray said to himself. "Time to bust this joint." He was about to exit the room when a nearby voice caught his attention.

" _Calling Gray Fullbuster! Come in, Gray Fullbuster! This is Lamia Scale!_ " Gray whipped his head around to see the symbol of Lamia Scale appearing on the TV. His organization and friends must've been trying to contact him! Finally! " _Gray Fullbuster, do you read me?_ "

"Lamia Scale!" Gray opened his wrist communicator to answer the call. But a kid's voice from the TV beat him to it.

" _Gray Fullbuster responding! Read you loud and clear!_ " Gray walked closer to the TV in confusion.

" _Gray Fullbuster, Planet Earth needs your help!_ " the announcer continued. What confused him even more was a kid holding up a cardboard spaceship, complete with a Gray Fullbuster action figure, just like him! What the…?

" _On the way!_ " the kid cheered.

" ** _GRAY FULLBUSTER!_** _The world's greatest superhero, now the world's greatest toy!_ " Gray watched in shock as he saw his likeness in the commercial being played with. " _Gray has it all! Wrist communicator accessory!_ "

" _Calling Gray Fullbuster!_ " He looked at his own wrist communicator. It couldn't really be true, could it?

" _Karate Chop Action!_ " The kid on the TV pushed the button on the space toy's back, smashing a stack of pencils with a chop.

" _Wow!_ " Gray's confusion festered. Natsu did the same thing to him before!

" _Pulsating Ice-Make Magic light!_ " The kid flashed a blue light at a bunch of empty soda cans, then knocked them over.

" _Total annihilation!_ " This isn't real… It can't be real!

" _Multi-phrase voice simulator!_ " The kid pressed a button on the toy's chest, causing its voice simulator to respond.

" _It's a secret mission in uncharted space!_ " Gray pressed the button on his own chest, and his eyes widened as he heard it say the same message.

" _And best of all,_ _ **High-Pressure Ice Wings!**_ " The action figure's wings popped out, and footage was shown of him flying through the air.

" ** _To infinity and beyond!_** " Gray's voice boomed from the TV. In addition, a disclaimer flashed at the bottom of the screen, " _Not a flying toy._ "

Gray shook his head in disbelief. " _Get your Gray Fullbuster action figure and save a galaxy near you!_ _ **GRAY FULLBUSTER!**_ _Available at all Konishi's Toy Dojo outlets, and other stores nationwide and worldwide._ "

Gray just stood there, stricken with complete shock at the commercial that revealed who he truly was. Flipping his wrist communicator open, he looked at the underside of the cover molded with three words: "MADE IN TAIWAN." As much as Gray tried to convince himself, he couldn't help but realize that everything he thought he was, everything he stood for, was fake. Dejected, he lowered his head and walked out into the hall.

 ** _Out among the stars I sail  
Way beyond the moon  
In my silver ship I sail  
A dream that ended too soon_**

Reaching the stairwell, Gray looked up at an open window illuminated by a clear sunlight. He watched a bird fly outside.

 ** _Now I know exactly who I am  
And what I'm here for_**

"You are a toy! You can't fly!" Natsu's words from a couple of days ago echoed in Gray's mind. He rested his head on the banister miserably. All this time, he finally knew why his powers weren't working— it was because he didn't _have_ any. He wasn't a Space Hero. He wasn't the mighty leader of Lamia Scale. He wasn't even a real hero. He was just a toy, like Natsu said all along.

 ** _And I will go sailing  
No more_**

After a moment, Gray snapped his eyes open, looking up at the sky with sudden determination. What was he doing, getting all depressed? He was Gray Fullbuster, the greatest hero in the galaxy, the leader of the Lamia Scale Squad, and guardian of the universe! Gray would prove to Natsu _and_ to himself who he was! He climbed the banister, finally making his way to the top.

 ** _But no, it can't be true  
I could fly if I wanted to_**

Gray pressed the big red button on his chest, causing his Ice Wings to pop out.

 ** _Like a bird in the sky  
If I believed I could fly  
Why, I'd fly_**

Gray positioned himself, spread his arms, and vocalized with a loud and clear proclamation, " **To infinity and beyond!** "

With that, the space toy jumped towards the window. He soared through the air…

…for about a second.

Gravity kicked in, and Gray fell, clattering along some stairs before landing on the bottom floor.

He opened his eyes to see a sad sight lying next to him: his severed left arm, a few inches away from his empty arm socket.

 ** _Clearly, I will go sailing  
No more_**

Gray collapsed in defeat, crushed by the devastating truth, before finally accepting it.

He _was_ a toy after all.

At that moment, Asuka walked into the hallway. She called out, "Mom! Mom, have you seen my Sue doll?"

"What, dear? What was that?" her mom asked, as Asuka accidentally stepped into Gray. She picked the toy up, along with his detached arm.

"Never mind!" Asuka called back, shooting an interested look at the space toy. He must've been another dreaded experiment created by her nasty brother's. Well, she _did_ rescue him, and since she can't find Sue, she found someone else to come to her little tea party…


	11. From Bad to Worse

Oblivious of Gray's emotional stress from discovering his true existence as a toy, Natsu and Lucy remained hidden in the closet, brightening up the interior with fits of joyous laughter and pleasant conversations about the past as well as today. Natsu concluded his share of information with a laugh, "…and then, when I touched his helmet, Gray thinks he's losing oxygen. He thinks the whole atmosphere was space itself!"

Lucy giggled in amusement, "Oh, joy. That was a bit of a downer for the space guy. Then again, that's what he was programmed to think."

"Programmed?" Natsu questioned. "What are you talking about?"

Lucy explained, "Are you aware that almost 50% of the world's action figures are based on characters from comic books, TV shows, and movies? During the last stage of their manufacturing, these toys were implanted with memories to make them believe that they're the real thing. But some action figures aren't implanted with those memories, and embraced their true nature as toys."

Natsu said in amazement, "Wow! Almost 50% of the world's action figures are implanted with memories?"

Lucy nodded, "That's right. The _Gray Fullbuster: Space Hero_ action figure, and every toy based on _Lamia Scale,_ is no exception. Well, except for Sherry and Sherria, maybe. Apparently, memory implants don't work on female action figures, or maybe a few male action figures, because they're somehow immune."

Natsu chuckled, "So that explains why Gray's acting like the astro-nut. Seriously, how did you know that?"

"Internet," Lucy answered. "Whenever Takeshi's mom was sleeping, I took the time to use her laptop without being seen. I've done a lot of research on the _Lamia Scale_ franchise. It's the next big thing in the toy biz, surpassing the popularity of the _Natsu Dragneel_ lineup. Whenever kids see astronauts blast off, they only wanted to play with toys based on them, like _Lamia Scale._ "

"Yep. That explains a _whole_ lot," Natsu rolled his eyes. "No wonder Gray hogged all the attention…" He then decided to change the subject, "Lucy, about those cannibals from last night…"

" _Mutant Toys,"_ Lucy corrected. "They're not cannibals. Toys don't eat other toys."

"You told me they fixed you up. They repaired your body and took care of you. Is that true?" Natsu asked.

"Yeah," Lucy nodded. "The Mutant Toys used to be normal toys, until Takeshi decided to mix their parts together to create bizarre experiments. Like many other toys, they lived in fear of Takeshi's tyranny over them."

"I see…" Natsu confirmed. "But what does that have to do with you?"

Lucy answered, "They found me after Takeshi ripped apart my body and scattered my parts all over the room. They put my body back together again, and I'm as good as new. The Mutant Toys look scary at first, but deep down, they're very kind, and they're very good at fixing things. They hated Takeshi as much as other toys do."

Natsu said confusedly, "I don't get it. We saw them eat those other toys."

Lucy responded, "You mean Lulu and the Wyvern? They fixed them up. Nothing a little hammering and stitching can't fix, right?"

Natsu chuckled awkwardly, "Wow, I feel _so_ dumb. They look scary in person the first time I met them. If you hadn't told me sooner, I wouldn't be so harsh on them…"

Lucy assured with a smile, "It's okay, Natsu. You'll have all the time to apologize when we get back to the room."

Natsu smiled back, "Okay."

"Now, let's get back to business," Lucy said determinedly. "Is the coast clear? Is Zeke gone?"

"I'll check outside," Natsu offered. "But first, I need to reach the doorknob. It's very high to reach."

 **A few attempts later…**

With a jiggle of the doorknob, the closet door wrenched open and Natsu fell out, entangled in Christmas lights. A colorful bowling ball toppled out, smashing Natsu square on the head and causing him to see stars. "Oooof!"

Lucy jumped out of the closet and tended to her boyfriend's aid, "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. The coast is clear," Natsu said dizzily. He shook his head to clear the dizziness.

"That's good to hear," Lucy breathed in relief. "Where's Gray?"

"Gray? Hey, Gray. We can go now. Zeke's gone," Natsu called out, searching for any sign of the space toy, but no response. "Gray, where are you?"

" _There's a secret mission in uncharted space! Let's go!_ " an automated voice sample spoke nearby. Natsu and Lucy pinpointed the location of the sound— a room next to the closet door.

"In there!" Lucy whispered. The two crept quietly along the floor, with the lights dragging behind Natsu.

"Really?" Asuka's voice asked from inside the room. "That is _so_ interesting."

Natsu and Lucy finally reached the room and peeked around the edge of the door. Inside, they saw Asuka sitting at a miniature table with two dolls, Éclair and Momon. "This must be Asuka's room," Natsu guessed.

"Yep. The room of Takeshi's little sister. And I think we found our space guy. At the right time, but at the wrong place," Lucy pointed a finger inside the room. She pointed at Gray, who was seated at the table, dressed up in a frilly apron and fashionable party hat. "And the other bad news is, he's missing an arm."

"Who?" Natsu spotted the guest in Asuka's tea party, who turned out to be a certain space toy with a severed arm. "Gray!"

"Would you like some tea, Mrs. Yankee?" Asuka asked sweetly, offering a teapot to the fancily-dressed up Gray. "It's so nice you could join us on such late notice." She obviously hadn't noticed Natsu and Lucy in the doorway, though they ducked out of sight, just to be on the safe side.

"Oh, great," Natsu groaned. "It's bad enough Gray got knocked out the window, now he's missing an arm?!"

Lucy insisted, "Let's not worry about that for now. We need to focus."

Natsu wondered, "How are we gonna get to him?"

"What a lovely hat, Mrs. Yankee," Asuka complimented Gray. "It goes quite well with your head."

"Don't worry, I got this," Lucy winked. Taking a few steps further, she cleared her throat and spoke in a high voice, "Asuka! Oh, Asuka!"

"Mom?" Asuka stopped pouring tea and responded to Lucy's impression of her mother. She turned to the dolls, "Please excuse me, everyone. I'll be right back." She stood up and exited the room, passing Natsu and Lucy hiding in the Christmas lights. She called out, "What is it, Mom? Mom, where are you?"

Lucy smirked to herself, "Gotcha!"

Natsu marveled, "Awesome! How did you do that?"

Lucy explained with a smile, "I usually tune up my voice to impersonate Takeshi's mom to keep the kids distracted. Celestial Treasure Hunter Lesson #12: Strategy is the key to success."

"Sweet. That gives us the edge we need," Natsu grinned.

"But it won't last long," Lucy reminded. "We gotta get him outta here before Asuka comes back."

Popping out of the Christmas lights, Natsu and Lucy bolted inside the room and over to Gray, who slumped lazily on the table. Natsu called out, "Gray! Hey, Snowman!"

"Are you okay?" Lucy asked.

" **GONE!** " Gray suddenly lifted his head up with a wail, albeit a bit drunk and depressed. "It's all gone. All is gone! Bye-bye! Whoo-hoo! See ya!"

Natsu and Lucy looked at him in genuine concern. Picking up Gray's severed arm, the salmon-haired toy spoke first, "What happened to you?"

"You were right, Pyro," Gray moaned degradingly. "I'm a fake. I'm not real. I'm super-duper fake. Whoo! Goodbye to the old life I used to have! Goodbye, Gray. Goodbye, Lamia Scale. I'll never be the same again."

"No, he meant, what _happened_ to you?" Lucy clarified. "You're acting a bit… odd."

Gray's voice rose with clear insanity, "One minute, you're defending the whole galaxy with your friends, and suddenly you found yourself suckin' done Darjeeling with Éclair from Fire Village and her little bird friend named Momon." He gestured to the aforementioned toys, who smiled and waved innocently.

"If I had to guess, they're two of a few in Asuka's collection lucky enough to survive Takeshi's gruesome operations," Lucy assumed.

Éclair replied to Lucy, "Yes. Asuka treasured us so much; she was brave enough to keep us beyond Takeshi's reach. We're two of her favorite toys. We're the lucky ones. We're survivors."

Momon agreed, "Takeshi's a toy killer! If he found us, he's gonna rip the stuffing and/or plastic out of our noses!"

Natsu stated, "I'm starting to like Asuka better than Takeshi. When I saw him tear apart Lulu and the Wyvern, I can't help but feel sorry for her."

Lucy agreed, "Me too. She and her toys had so much promise."

"Hey, guys," Gray smiled drunkenly. "You wanna share a drink with me?"

"Um, no thank you," Lucy shook her head. "In fact, you've had enough tea for today." She removed the teapot from the severed arm's fingers (Asuka used it to hold the pot).

Natsu helped the space toy up, "Let's skip the party and get you outta here, Gray."

Suddenly, Gray snapped at their faces. He yelled insanely, " **GRAY IS DEAD!** He's passed away! He's gone! I'm not Gray! I'm a **FAKE!** Don't you get it?! You see the hat?!" He pointed to the hat situated on top of his helmet, **"** I am Mrs. Yankee!" He began to laugh like a lunatic, and this was weirding out all toys present.

" **GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF!** " Lucy screamed angrily. She pressed Gray's helmet open and slapped him across the face with his own detached arm, followed by another slap from her own hand, before closing the helmet. That seemed to do the trick as he began to calm down. Gray wasn't acting crazy anymore.

Natsu laughed approvingly, "Good one! I've been waiting for that!"

Lucy smiled proudly, "That's what I do best. I fix problems they can't fix themselves."

Natsu corrected himself, "No, no, I mean, the slap. I always wanted to see his face slapped."

Lucy raised an eyebrow, "You wanted me to hurt him? That's a bit harsh, don't you think?"

Momon whispered to Éclair, "Hey, Éclair? Is it me, or is that space guy going over the cuckoo clock?"

Éclair assumed, "He seemed to be in a lot of stress."

"I… I… I… I… I'm… I'm… I'm… I'm sorry. Thanks, Natsu. You too, Lucy," Gray said soberly. "You're right. I'm just a little bit depressed, that's all." Calmly taking his detached arm, he walked out of the room, with Natsu and Lucy following. "I can get through this." He stopped at the center of the hallway, and the next second…

" **OH, I'M A SHAM!** " Suffering a mental breakdown, Gray crumbled to his knees and slammed his detached arm to the floor. "I'm a fraud! A fake! An imposter!"

"Gray, keep it down!" Lucy hissed. "You wanna wake up the family?!"

Gray whined, "Look at me! I'm nothing! I can't do anything! I can't even fly out of a window!" He used his severed arm to point towards the open window. "The hat looks good on me, right? Somebody, anybody! Tell me the hat looks good on me! The apron is a bit much…"

At that moment, Natsu looked at the direction of Takeshi's room, followed by the window across the way to Ken's bedroom window. And just like that, he had an idea!

"Out the window?! Gray, you're a genius!" Natsu shouted happily, giving a friendly pat on the space toy's back. "Why didn't we think of this before? It's a super-great idea!"

"You have a plan?" Lucy asked.

"Oh, yeah, baby. And it's a very good one! It's our one way ticket outta this house!" Natsu smiled excitedly.

"Really?! You know a different way outta here?!" Lucy beamed hopefully.

"I'll give the rundown later. C'mon, this way!" Looping the coil of Christmas lights around his arm, he grabbed Gray and walked off with him back to Takeshi's room.

"I trust you, Natsu. Whatever crazy idea you're having, I hope it works!" Lucy followed suit.

Gray complained depressingly, "Years of academy training, **WASTED!** "

* * *

Next door, things were quiet ever since Natsu and Gray disappeared. In Ken's soon-to-be former room, the toys were doing a few things before the big move tomorrow morning. For instance, Happy and Gajeel were playing a game of Battleship. So far, the Iron Dragon Slayer action figure was winning, and every time he won, the poor Exceed toy was losing his body… literally! Recently, Happy lost his whiskers to Gajeel, who wore it over his cheeks.

"B-3," Happy said hopefully.

"Miss!" Gajeel said triumphantly. "G-6."

"Aww, you sunk it!" Happy pouted. He noticed Gajeel laughing smugly, and he narrowed his eyes in suspicion, "Are you peeking?"

"Oh, quit complainin', you whiny cat, and pay up," Gajeel smirked. Happy started to pull out his right paw, but the Iron Dragon Slayer action figure stopped him, "No, no, not the paw. Give me the little nose on your face."

"How about three out of five?" Happy offered, speaking in a nasally voice after pulling out the small nose from his face. He was about to hand it over when…

"Hey, guys! Guys!" a familiar voice yelled out from the house next door. "Guys! Over here!"

Gajeel and Happy turned to the window with complete shock and disbelief. It was Natsu, who lifted Takeshi's window open and waved to gain the attention of Ken's toys.

Gajeel exclaimed, "Son of a building block, it's Natsu!"

Happy cried, "Natsu's in Takeshi's bedroom?!"

Natsu shouted jovially, "Hey! I'm here! It's me, Natsu!"

"Hey, everyone! It's Natsu!" Happy signaled.

"Natsu?!" the rest of the toys shot up in surprise, some of them popping up from their packing boxes stuffed in Styrofoam.

"Natsu?" Mirajane beamed.

"Natsu?!" Erza gasped.

"You're kidding me!" Cana shouted.

"I can't believe it!" Laxus breathed.

"Natsu!" Wendy said happily.

Back in Takeshi's room, Natsu and Lucy laughed together in anticipation. If the salmon-haired toy's plan proceeded as they had hoped, they would find freedom from this nightmare at last. Lucy squealed gleefully, "This is it! One tight rope over the house next door, and we're home free! My body can finally rest after all the bruises and ripping. We've only got one shot at this."

"But it's worth it," Natsu said happily. "We'll be outta here in no time! Right, Gray?" He turned to Gray, waiting for him to respond. "Uh, Gray?"

Gray just sat on the floor, playing "Bombs Away" with his broken arm. He moved the arm around like an airplane, making noises, before he crashed it against the ground, paying Natsu and Lucy no mind.

"He's still losing it, isn't he?" Lucy wondered. "I don't know if he's acting like a loon, or he's still the same space guy with all the fancy galactic talk."

Natsu shrugged, "No clue."

"Hey, look! It's Natsu! Natsu's here!" Wendy's voice cried out from the window, which was packed with the rest of Ken's toys.

"He's in the psycho's bedroom!" Cana pointed out.

Natsu turned his attention away from Gray to look at everyone else. He cheered, "Boy, am I glad to see you guys! I miss you all big time!"

Happy jumped up and down in excitement, "We miss you too, Natsu! We knew you'd come back!"

Erza smiled, "We still believe in you."

"And guess who I found!" With a smirk, Natsu gestured to Lucy, who appeared next to him and gave a cheerily wave to the toys next door. And just like that, everyone was stunned, their eyes widening with surprise, and their hearts nearly skipping a beat. They were heavily shocked to have seen a very familiar face, a face they haven't seen in a long time. It was the face of someone they looked up to as a role model, a brave toy, a better friend, someone who was lost to Takeshi about a year ago, someone they missed so dearly…

"Hey, guys!" Lucy greeted. "What's up?"

" **LUUUUUUUUCCCCCCYYYYYY!** " At once, the entire collection of Ken's toys burst into cheers and screams of joy, delighted to have seen Lucy again for the first time in many a month. The blonde-haired toy couldn't help but feel a slight wash of nostalgia to have reunited with her old friends, a memory of the life she used to have.

"Lucy! We miss you so much!" Erza cried happily.

"We haven't seen you in a long time, girl," Gajeel stated.

"We're so glad to see you again, Lucy! Somebody pinch me!" Wendy sniffled.

"She's alive! She's alive! She's alive!" Happy cheered.

"I'm so glad to see you all, too," Lucy responded. "I miss everyone… Erza, Wendy, Levy, Happy… I just can't wait to go over that window and give you all a big hug. I wanna go back to my old life; getting played with by Ken, hanging out with friends, epic adventures in the house… and going on some dates with Natsu."

"Oh, yeah," Natsu blushed with a smile.

"Welcome back, Lucy," Levy's words scrolled across her display screen.

"I never thought it would come to this," Reedus breathed.

"The whole gang's back together again, safe and sound," Laxus smirked.

"But the bad news is, she stuck in Takeshi's room with Natsu," Cana pointed out.

"We thought you were gone forever!" Mirajane worried.

"We've been worried sick! For like, a whole year!" Lisanna stated.

"Where have you been all this time?" Kinana asked.

"What are you doing over there? Why didn't you let us know you're okay?" Laki added.

"It's a long story, guys," Lucy confessed. "We'll explain later. We promise."

"Here, catch this!" Natsu tossed one end of the Christmas lights over to the other window, and by a stroke of luck, Erza was able to catch it.

Erza announced, "I got it, Natsu!"

Wendy repeated, "She's got it, Natsu!"

Natsu cheered, "Good going, Erza! Now tie it up to something!"

Lucy added, "That way, we could climb across!"

"Wait, wait, wait. I've got a better idea," Gajeel suggested. "How about we let Lucy go first?"

"And Natsu will go last?" Lucy asked.

"No. We just dump him!" Gajeel snapped, grabbing the Christmas lights from Erza. "We leave that salmon-haired turncoat behind!"

"Hey!" Lucy shouted.

"Gajeel!" Erza protested.

"That's just manly rude!" Elfman scolded.

"Have you all taken stupid pills this morning?" Gajeel frowned. "Have you forgotten what Natsu did to Gray? And now, you wanna let that traitor back over here?"

"I'm with Gajeel," Cana nodded in agreement. "We all know that Natsu knocked Gray out the window. And he's gonna do the same thing to us if he let him in."

"No, no, no, no, no, no!" Natsu shook his head, chuckling about the whole misunderstanding. "You got it all wrong, Gajeel. Gray's fine. He's in the room with us."

Gajeel scoffed, "Ha! How stupid do you think we are?"

"He's not lying! He's telling the truth!" Lucy insisted. "Gray survived his big fall from the window and followed us all the way here. That's how the three of us got stuck together."

Cana smirked mischievously, "If Gray's with you and Natsu, then where is he?"

"We told you before, he's here with us," Lucy replied sternly. "Gray stowed away in the family van and followed Natsu to Zodiac Planet. They got stuck in a crane game and were pulled out by Takeshi, mistaking them to be hidden prizes. That's when I found _them,_ and they found _me._ I've risked plastic life and limb to survive Takeshi for a year. A WHOLE freakin' year! It was painful, but I endured it with pride. When I reunited with Natsu and met Gray, I did the best I could to keep them out of harm's way. I did what I had to do for my friends, just as much as Natsu did for _his_ friends… If you didn't believe him, why didn't you believe me?"

Everyone paused. The toys said nothing. Gajeel and Cana were the least convinced.

"C'mon, guys! Gray is _with_ us! He _is_ with us!" Natsu argued. He turned back to Gray, "Gray, do us a favor. Why don't you come up and tell all the nice toys that you're not dead?"

Gray was still preoccupied, however. He removed the wrist communicator accessory from his detached arm and threw it away, followed by his space helmet, which, surprisingly, was also an accessory. And just like that, he was helmetless. Natsu and Lucy were heavily concerned of Gray's current state; he was taking his new reality a bit hard.

"I don't think he's listening to us," Lucy stated.

Natsu turned back to the other toys with a slightly cautious expression. "Just a sec!" He turned to Gray, ignoring every instinct to lose his cool, "Gray, will you get up here and lend us a hand?"

And he did. He tossed his detached arm, which landed by Natsu and Lucy's feet, leaving them bewildered.

"Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha," Natsu laughed sarcastically. "That's very funny, Gray." He then exploded, " **THIS IS SERIOUS!** "

"Nice going, Natsu," Lucy frowned, crossing her arms. "One minute, we're asking the other toys to rope us outta here, and then the next minute, they don't want to!"

Natsu growled, "Well, it's not my fault Gray got knocked out the window! It was an accident!"

Lucy pointed out, "An accident you caused! You could've told them the whole story!"

Natsu responded, "I tried! But they refused to believe me! They tried to rip me to shreds!"

Lucy groaned, "So, do you have any other bright ideas?"

Natsu shrugged, "I'm fresh out. What about you?"

Lucy shouted, "Don't ask me! You're the one who came up with this idea!"

Natsu argued, "What's THAT supposed to mean?!"

Lucy yelled angrily, "You heard me! But you didn't think this through!"

The conversation escalated into a heated argument in light of the situation, their voices echoing towards Ken's window. The other toys could only listen in confusion. Wendy decided to break the ice, "Natsu? Lucy? Where are you?"

Gajeel scoffed, "He's lyin'. Gray ain't there."

Natsu and Lucy overheard Gajeel's statement, and the two got into another argument, which was quiet and much harder for the other toys to hear. They had to come up with a desperate attempt to convince the toys that Gray was indeed with them.

 **One minute later…**

Natsu reappeared at the edge of Takeshi's window, pretending to notice something out of the other toys' view. Natsu spoke, "Hey, Gray! Why don't you say hi to the guys over there?

Just then, a familiar arm popped out and waved at the toys. It was Gray! Or at least, they thought he was. As it turned out, it was Gray's severed arm that Lucy was holding, to make it look like the space toy was standing next to Natsu, as part of their so-called strategy.

"Hiya, fellas!" Lucy threw her voice to make an impression of Gray as best she could. Moving the arm like a puppet, she continued, "To infinity and beyond!"

"Hey, look! It's Gray!" Wendy smiled.

Natsu grinned, "Hey, Gray, how's about we show the guys our new secret best-friends handshake?" He shook the detached arm, before giving the open palm a slap of his hand, "Gimme five, man!"

"Something's screwy here," Cana eyed suspiciously. Natsu would never make up with Gray so quickly, especially because of how jealous he was of him.

"You see that, guys? We're friends now. Aren't we, Gray?" Natsu asked.

"You bet. Give me a hug," Lucy impersonated Gray's voice again, before making his arm pull Natsu forward and giving him pats to the back and shoulder.

Natsu laughed awkwardly, "Oh, I love you, too."

Lucy muttered to herself, "This isn't a good idea."

"See? It _is_ Gray!" Happy said to Gajeel. "Now give back the lights, Gajeel!"

"Wait just a minute," Gajeel sneered. Like Cana, he felt that the salmon-haired toy was hiding something. He called out, "What are you tryin' to pull?"

"Nothing," Natsu shrugged innocently and threw his arms up, accidently exposing Gray's severed arm and dragging Lucy along with it.

"Natsu, wait—" Lucy began.

" **AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!** " all of Ken's toys screamed in horror at what they saw in Natsu and Lucy's hands. Wendy, on the other hand, was sickened by the grotesque sight in front of her and fainted.

"Wendy!" Erza cried. She grabbed Wendy's unconscious body and leaped away from the desk. Meanwhile, the toys were even more horrified and angrier than ever. Natsu and Lucy realized that they unintentionally revealed Gray's broken arm. They tried to hide the arm, but it was too late to undo the damage.

"Geez Louise, that was disgusting," Cana commented. "I need a drink."

" **MURDERER!** " Gajeel yelled furiously.

" **NO!** No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!" Natsu screamed frantically.

"You murderin' dragon!" Gajeel accused.

"It's not what you think, I swear!" Natsu confessed.

"You tryin' to deceive us again, are ya?" Gajeel growled. "Just admit it! You killed Gray, and that girlfriend of yours was in cahoots with ya!"

" **WHAT?!** " Lucy exclaimed shockingly. "I did no such thing! I had nothing to do with it!"

"Now we get it. You wanted to come back so that you'd kill all of us. You wanted to keep us stranded outside forever!" Cana stated bitterly. "You're too loyal to Natsu that you were willing to do anything for him, even kill Gray. It was all an act and we almost fell for it!"

"No! We would never hurt anyone, not even Gray!" Lucy protested angrily. "Why can't any of you listen to—"

"No, YOU listen!" Cana shot back. "All you care about is yourselves and your selfish love for Ken. You didn't care about any of us at all! You should've stayed here where bad toys like you belong!"

Natsu screamed, "No! We're not bad toys! We're trying to help! We swear! **WE SWEAR IT!** "

Gajeel snorted, "Blah, blah, blah. Save it for the jury! I hope Takeshi turns you and your vixen accomplice into spare parts, ya creep!" And with that, he dropped the lights, letting them fall along the edges of Takeshi's house.

"No, no! Don't leave! **DON'T LEAVE!** " Natsu begged. " **YOU GOTTA HELP US, PLEASE! YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE OUT THERE! IT'S A MADHOUSE! A MADHOUSE!** "

"No…" Lucy whispered despairingly. "You're just gonna leave us here? After everything we've been through…?"

Casting one final glare at Natsu and Lucy, Gajeel turned to the other toys, "C'mon, let's get outta here."

Laki sighed, "And to think, we're happy to see Lucy after all those months…"

Kinana remarked, "It turned out, we reunited with her for nothing."

Reedus stated, "She's as selfish as Natsu."

Elfman frowned, "He ain't no man. He's a monster. And she's a girlfriend of a monster."

Laxus scoffed, "Let's go. Those two ain't worth the mess."

Cana added, "Go back to your lives, ladies and germs. Show's over."

Soon, everyone had left but Happy, an extremely sad look plastering his face. He had been Natsu's best friend, and had supported his endeavors his whole life. But in the end, he realized that Gajeel was right.

" **HAPPY! HAPPY, PLEASE! PLEASE, LISTEN TO ME!** " Natsu pleaded. Without another word, the Exceed toy reached up and closed the blinds down, blocking his former best friend from view. He then left, heartbroken.

" **NO! NO, COME BACK!** Ha-Ha-Ha-Happy…" Finally losing the battle, Natsu let out a defeated cry, and his body slumped against the open window, crushed with hopelessness. Lucy, sympathetic towards the toy she loved while wrought with her own grief, knelt down to Natsu's level and hugged his chest tightly, her voice choking as she began to sob quietly.

Natsu croaked sadly, "This is all my fault. I caused all this mess. I'll never forgive myself."

Lucy sniffled, "We're both to blame, Natsu."

The sobs kept on heaving. And then, the clouds formed overhead, bolting out the sun.


	12. The Big One

It was fair to say that this was the worst day. Natsu and Lucy had been separated from their kid, their fellow toys thought that they killed Gray out of jealousy and turned against them, and they, along with a clinically depressed Gray, were stuck in the home of the most evil boy in the neighborhood. After spending less than five minutes of sinking their sorrows in the clouds, Natsu and Lucy managed to straighten themselves and calm down.

"It's a shame," Lucy sighed sadly. "We can't get back."

"I know," Natsu nodded. "I couldn't bring us back. I tried so hard, but in the end, I'm just a loser. I'm sorry, Lucy. It's all my fault. I ruined our lives. None of this would've happened if I hadn't pushed Gray out the window." His voice choked, "I'm such a dumb toy. And what's happening to us now is because I'm a big one. Some heroic toy I turned out to be…"

"I guess you're just trying to play the hero for all of us, right?" Lucy asked, wrapping her arms around Natsu. "I don't blame you. I don't blame anyone for this. I'm just glad that in the end, we get to stay together. And we'll see it through, to the very end."

Natsu looked up to see the pure comfort in Lucy's eyes. The blonde-haired toy smiled at him, and the two shared a kiss. This was exactly what Natsu needed. He needed to know that she still cared for him, and even though it looked like hope was lost, they still had each other.

By the time the two released the kiss, Natsu looked onward to the window. He said, "Well, it can't get any worse…"

The pull-string Dragon Slayer was immediately proven wrong when he and Lucy heard noises. They turned around to see an unexpected arrival— the Mutant Toys were back, and they were surrounding Gray!

"It's the cannibals! They're gonna eat Gray!" Natsu yelled in horror. With Gray's arm in hand, he jumped down to the floor and ran over to save him. "Don't worry, Snowman! I'll save you!"

Lucy yelled bewilderedly, "Natsu, what are you doing?! Come back! They're—"

Unfortunately, her protests fell on deaf ears, and Natsu kept charging towards the Mutant Toys. He cried thunderously, "Here I come, you stupid, ugly, disfigured beatniks!"

Babyface turned from the fray to face Natsu and, before he could move to attack her, she grabbed Gray's arm with her erector-set pinchers, trying to take it from him. But Natsu wasn't about to give up without a fight. He shouted, "Get back! Back, you cannibals! WHOA!" After a brief tug-of-war, Babyface finally wrenched the arm away from Natsu, flinging him against the wall.

Lucy slapped her forehead and groaned, "Typical of Natsu, rushing into things without thinking things through. It makes me wonder why he's my boyfriend." She then shrugged, "Oh, well. Guess the truth's gonna blow up in his face."

Natsu witnessed the Mutant Toys swarming around Gray, doing something strange to him. He was unable to see him, and a feeling of dread swept over him. He pulled himself up and ran over to the mob of Mutant Toys, desperate to save the space toy's life. Natsu growled, "Hey, he's still alive, and you're not gonna get him, you monsters!" One by one, he pulled the Mutant Toys away. He dug his way through the crowd to see…

…Gray still alive, sitting up with his arm back in place! Somehow, they managed to reattach his arm!

Natsu's anger quickly turned to confusion. He breathed in disbelief, "They… They fixed you!" He walked over to Gray and shook his newly-attached arm to confirm what he saw was real.

Joining the others, Lucy placed her hands on her hips. She gave a cocky smirk, "See? I told ya. They're the Mutant Toys, toys that fix other toys, the ones I told you about. Remember? They look scary, but they're not dangerous. They're kind, gentle, and they **DON'T** eat toys for food."

"Those're the Mutant Toys?" A puzzled expression crossed Natsu's face. "But they're cannibals, aren't they? I saw them eat Lulu and the Wyvern."

Lucy grinned confidently, "Like I said, nothing a little hammering and stitching can't fix."

The Mutant Toys moved aside to reveal two other toys. To Natsu's surprise, it was Lulu and the Wyvern, whose heads were reattached to their proper bodies. He asked, "Well, why didn't you say so?"

"I _did_ say so!" Lucy glared at him in annoyance. "The Mutant Toys are experiments mixed with parts of other toys. As freaky as they look, they're still toys, just like us. All they ever wanted was to have a kid play with them. In the end, they were just victims of Takeshi's sadistic games. They wanted to be free. Didn't I remind you of that?"

"Takeshi's victims?" Natsu turned around to see the Mutant Toys, who gazed innocently at the pull-string Dragon Slayer, some giving disappointed looks at him for mistaking them as monsters. He rubbed his head embarrassingly, "Oh, I didn't… I didn't know."

Lucy sighed exasperatedly, "That's always the problem with you. Your attention span's not good in comparing one thing with the other. It's no wonder you mistook the Mutant Toys for cannibals, and you failed to realize who they are, until it was _way_ too late." She clicked her tongue in disappointment, "You're a credit to gullible guys everywhere, Natsu." She then smiled, "Then again, that's one of the things I love about you. You're gullible sometimes, but you're still very cute."

Natsu stammered, "I… I…"

"Celestial Treasure Hunter Lesson #192: Never judge a book by its cover," Lucy stated. "Now that they're here, you can apologize to them. Starting now."

Natsu stared at the Mutant Toys, letting it all sink in. In the past, they fixed Lucy, then Lulu and the Wyvern, then Gray… He then came to the conclusion that Lucy was right. The Mutant Toys weren't cannibals at all. They were struggling to help other toys victimized by Takeshi. Even if they were different, they were kind-hearted toys. They were willing to help anyone, even Gray… and Natsu tried to hurt them without discovering the truth. Of course… How could he be so blind?

"I'm sorry, guys. I really am just a dumb toy," Natsu apologized. "You found Lucy and fixed her up, right? You're her friends, right?" The Mutant Toys said nothing, but they nodded their heads. "For a second there, I thought you we're gonna…" Natsu laughed sheepishly, before he continued, "…y'know, eat our friend."

Immediately, the Mutant Toys scattered and retreated into the shadows.

"Huh? Hey, wait! Where are you going?" Natsu asked. "I said I was sorry! Did I miss something?"

Lucy assumed, "Well, it's either they're scared of you because they thought you'd hurt them again, or somebody's coming upstairs, like—"

"Takeshi?" Takeshi's mother called from outside.

"Not now, Mom! I'm busy!" a familiar voice snapped back.

"Takeshi!" Natsu gasped.

"I stand corrected," Lucy worried.

"We gotta hide, quick!" Natsu cried frantically.

As footsteps approached the bedroom, the two toys ran back to Gray and tried to drag him up. Natsu hissed, "Gray, c'mon! Get up! You're too heavy!"

Lucy urged, "C'mon, Gray! We gotta move! Takeshi's coming!" Sadly, the space toy was still as depressed as ever, and refused to move. No matter how strong Natsu and Lucy's efforts were, they were in vain.

Finally, Natsu gave up and growled in frustration, "Fine! Go ahead and take a nap in the floor, for all I care! When Takeshi trashes you, don't blame me!" With that, he left Gray sitting alone in the middle of the floor.

Lucy asked, "What's going on?"

"We don't have time! Come on!" Natsu grabbed Lucy's arm and dragged her towards a nearby milk crate. He managed to flip it over himself, hiding them both from view.

Lucy snapped, "We can't leave him here! He needs our help!"

Natsu scoffed, "He's the Space Hero, the greatest fighter in the galaxy. He doesn't need our help. Besides, those Mutant Toys will probably fix him the way they fixed _you_ , right?"

"It's not that simple, Natsu," Lucy pointed out. "Some of Takeshi's methods are so extreme, that any toy caught in his grasp would suffer a fate even _worse_ than mutilation. Afterwards, they'll be impossible to fix. They'll be damaged _beyond_ repair!"

Natsu asked nervously, "Beyond repair? What do you mean?"

"What do you _think_ I mean?!" Lucy scolded. "Toys get _destroyed!_ Mutilating toys is bad enough, but _destroying_ toys is a disaster! One false move, and we're dead! That is the quality that fits Takeshi the title of _Toy Torturer._ Scratch that… _Toy Destroyer._ "

Natsu exclaimed fearfully, "So Takeshi really is a super-duper toy killer?!"

"And if we're able, they'll _kill_ us!" Lucy nodded. "There's no telling what could happen. He might mince us to bits, burn us to ashes, blow us to bits with a fireworks rocket—"

At that moment, Takeshi stormed into his room with a box in his hand. He cheered excitedly, "It came! It finally came!" The Toy Torturer ran over to his workbench and set the box down. Natsu and Lucy peered through the crate to get a better look at Takeshi, who ripped the box open and tossed aside some packing peanuts to reveal…

" _The Big One_." He pulled out of the box a fireworks rocket labeled with a Japanese translation of the exact words he read aloud.

"I stand corrected. Again," Lucy confirmed. "Now you get it?"

"Yeah," Natsu shivered. "I get it now."

Takeshi admired the rocket for a few seconds, before he set it on the workbench to read the warnings on the side, " _Extremely dangerous. Keep out of reach of children_." He then grinned, "Cool!" He started looking around his room, "What am I gonna blow? Hey, where's that wimpy salmon-haired doll? Or should I blow up that sissy blonde-haired doll?"

Natsu and Lucy backed away, closing each other's mouths to try and keep their voices down. Takeshi's eyes scanned the room until they fell on the very crate the two toys were hiding under. A twisted grin crossing his face, he walked over to the crate and lifted it up to see… nothing.

"Huh? That's weird. I could've sworn I saw something," Takeshi wondered. He was unaware that Natsu and Lucy were clinging to the top of the crate, hanging on for dear life and trying not to fall and reveal themselves. As Takeshi continued looking around, he took a step forward and accidentally stepped on Gray, inadvertently activating his Ice-Make Magic laser light. Soon, a horrible new idea came into the Toy Torturer's mind.

"Why not? I always wanted to put a spaceman into orbit," Takeshi grinned. He picked up Gray and the crate and slammed them onto his workbench. Picking up his toolbox, he slammed it on top of the crate, the impact dislodging Natsu and Lucy from their hiding place. Fortunately, Takeshi didn't see them. Reaching inside the toolbox, he pulled out a roll of duct tape, and Natsu and Lucy watched with open-mouthed horror as Takeshi taped Gray to the rocket, letting out an evil laugh or two.

Natsu whispered, "Spicy meatballs… He's gonna blow Gray sky-high. It's not gonna be a pleasant space ride for him!"

Lucy agreed, "By sending him into orbit, more like sending him to go _boom._ Like a firework for New Year's Eve…"

But as luck had it, a flash of lighting interrupted the moment, followed by booming thunder.

"Oh, no!" Takeshi whined. He trudged to the window to see that a huge rainstorm had commenced. "Aw, man!" Sullenly, he banged his forehead against the glass. Natsu and Lucy heaved sighs of relief. They're safe… for now.

Lucy breathed, "Thank Mother Nature… You spared us from Takeshi's wrath. For now, at least…"

Takeshi wasn't so quick to be deterred, though. Turning his focus from the rain to the rocket, he made a motion with his hands like he was talking into a walkie-talkie. He spoke, "This is Takeshi Sakamoto reporting. Launch of the shuttle has been delayed due to adverse weather conditions at the launch site." He grabbed an alarm clock with a doll's arm on it and wound it up, "Tomorrow's forecast:" He slammed it next to Gray, "Sunny." Takeshi laughed to himself again, and even though he was talking to himself, Natsu and Lucy could imagine him smiling evilly at them. "Sweet dreams."

"Sweet dreams? More like nightmares," Natsu dreaded.

"Like the nightmares you had yesterday?" Lucy asked, to which her boyfriend nodded.

* * *

Ken's room was close to being empty as most of his stuff had been packed in moving boxes. The boy lay on his bed, unable to sleep, his mind focused on Natsu and Gray, who were still missing. Mrs. Hirugashi walked into the room, a regretful look on her face. She said, "I looked everywhere, honey, but all I could find is your scarf." She placed the dragon-scaled scarf next to her son.

"But what if we leave them behind?" Ken asked worriedly.

"Aww, don't worry, honey. I'm sure we'll find Natsu and Gray before we leave tomorrow," Mrs. Hirugashi assured. She leaned in to give her son a goodnight kiss, trying to stay positive for his sake. Natsu and Gray weren't just toys to Ken, she knew that. They were his escape from the world, a nice distraction from everything. Natsu especially, who was the closest thing Ken had to a little brother.

Mrs. Hirugashi turned off the lights and left Ken's room, hoping that things would turn out fine. Soon after she had left, a moving box with the words "Ken's Toys" scrawled on it began to shake from side to side.

"Air…" a female voice muffled from inside. "I need air!"

Cana popped out of the box, gasping for air, with Gajeel appearing beside him. Even though the toys had since disowned Natsu, they still took his advice of picking a moving buddy to heart. Well, sort of.

"Will you quit movin' around, lady?!" Gajeel asked irritably.

"Sorry, Gaj," Cana yawned. "It's just that I get so nauseous before I travel."

"Since when did I get stuck with _you_ as a moving buddy?" Gajeel raised an eyebrow, before ducking back inside the box. "I expected Laxus to be."

"Everyone else was picked," Cana explained, following suit.

Outside, Mirajane looked at Ken's sleeping figure, the dragon-scaled scarf clutched tightly in his fingers. She really didn't want to believe that Natsu, the leader of Ken's toy collection and a great friend, was a murderer, but he hadn't exactly been subtle in his jealousy of Gray. Looking at Ken now, holding his most prized possession after Natsu himself, Mirajane could tell that Natsu's jealousy had been for nothing.

"Oh, Natsu…" she said sadly. "If only you could see how much Ken misses you."

She knew that life would never be the same without him.


	13. Toys' Heart-to-Heart

Back at Takeshi's house, an endless stream of rain poured from the clouds, which seemed to be making the exterior of the household look bleak as things were now. Come morning, Gray was going to be blown up by a rocket, and there was nothing Natsu and Lucy could do to stop it. To make matters worse, Ken was leaving tomorrow. At this point, Natsu could only guess that this was the punishment he received for his insane jealousy of Gray. But that was no reason that Gray or Lucy had to suffer, too.

Takeshi was sleeping in his bed, his butt sticking straight up in the air. Natsu and Lucy were struggling to move their milk crate prison, but because the toolbox reinforced the weight, the crate refused to budge.

"It's no use," Natsu wheezed. "Even with two of us, it ain't enough to make a dent in it."

Wiping sweat from her forehead, Lucy stated, "The only way to get out of this crate is to push the toolbox off. But where can we find someone who can?"

"I think I know I guy," Natsu gestured to Gray, who sat dejectedly on the desktop with the rocket strapped to his back.

"Of course!" Lucy beamed. "Now that he's got his arm back, he can get us outta here. It'll be a piece of cake." Her face shifted to a look of concern, "But considering the state he is now, I don't think he's got the energy."

"Why not give him a little juice?" Natsu suggested. He whispered to Gray, "Psst! Gray! Hey, Snowman!" No response. Natsu picked up a tiny stray washer next to him and tossed it. It bounced off the space toy's head, but still, he refused to answer.

Natsu sighed exasperatedly, "No dice. How are we gonna get him to talk to us?"

"Leave it to me and my trusty whip, the _Fleuve d'étoiles_ ," Lucy took out her toy whip from the side of her skirt. "It's a whip with an extendable plastic rope that can reach anything about 30 inches. It comes in handy when trying to get past deep and narrow passages. Well, not as deep as a bottomless pit, anyway… Now hold on. I'll give a sting to Gray's head. This'll only hurt a bit…"

With that, the Celestial Treasure Hunter doll swished her whip and threw an extendable purple rope that reached out from a hole in the milk crate. Approaching Gray's head, the rope slapped it across the cheek, before it retreated back to the whip. Finally, the space toy turned to look at Natsu and Lucy.

Natsu winked, "Nice one, Lu."

Lucy grinned, "Thanks."

"Hey, Snowman," Natsu called Gray. "Glad we got your attention, buddy. Be a good pal and help get this toolbox off us."

Gray just stared blankly at him for about a half-second, before he turned his head away.

"Come on, Gray," Natsu said desperately. He added with a sigh, "Gray, we can't do this without you. We need your help."

"I can't." Gray's reply was small, and was laced with grief and sorrow.

Natsu raised an eyebrow, "What do you mean, you can't?"

Gray repeated, "I can't help. I can't help anyone."

Lucy encouraged, "Sure you can, Gray. You can start by getting us outta here."

Natsu added, "We'll get that rocket off you, and we'll make a break for Ken's house."

"Ken's house, Takeshi's house…" Gray moaned. "What's the difference?"

Natsu chuckled jokingly, "You must've hit your head or something. Isn't that why you're moping around all afternoon? You're just not thinking clearly."

"No, Natsu. For the first time, I _am_ thinking clearly," Gray turned to look at Natsu and Lucy, his eyes full of sadness. "You were right all along. I'm not a Space Hero. I'm not the leader of Lamia Scale. I'm not even a real hero. I'm just a toy." He gestured to his wrist communicator and space helmet accessories sprawled across the floor, "A stupid, little, insignificant toy."

"Well, it's about time you figured that out," Natsu frowned, crossing his arms. "You finally knew the truth. I've been dropping information like crazy. So how does it feel, huh? You believed everything was real, only to find out it was all fake right before your very eyes?"

Lucy snapped, "Natsu, don't make him feel worse."

Natsu protested, "No, I'm not!"

"No, Natsu was right," Gray stated sadly. "I saw a TV commercial in a room that revealed who I really am. I had to face the facts, guys; I'm not the real Gray Fullbuster. I'm a toy. I'm _nothing._ " He finished with a deep sigh, "And I _always_ will be."

"Stop it!" Lucy scolded. "Don't say that! You're not like that. You're _special_. You _are_ a toy, but that doesn't mean you're stupid and insignificant." She smiled warmly, "You're not a Space Hero or a Lamia Scale member in real life, but being a toy is a whole lot better."

"Yeah, right," Gray scoffed.

"No, it is," Lucy insisted. "A toy is made for one purpose: to make a kid happy. A toy's life is only worth living if it's being loved by a kid. For example…" She gestured to Ken's house, "…over in that house next door is a kid who thinks you're the greatest. And it's not because you're a Space Hero. It's because you're a **toy.** You are **his** toy."

Gray asked doubtfully, "But why would Ken want me?"

"Why would Ken want you?! Look at you!" Lucy exclaimed. "You're a _Gray Fullbuster!_ Any other toy would give up his moving parts just to be you! You've got Ice-Make Magic laser light! Your waistcoat glows in the dark! You've got a multi-phrase voice simulator! And best of all, you've got Ice Wings! You are a **cool** toy! Your magic wasn't real, but still, you're really cool. The only thing that works is your **mind.** And that's why you had to set it straight. That's why you had to be yourself. Not a Space Hero, not an astronaut, but yourself." She paused to let it sink in, "So trust yourself. Believe in yourself. **Be** yourself."

Lucy's words seemed to be making an impact. Gray turned his head slightly, a hint of light slowly come back into his eyes.

"Well, I hate to admit it, but Lucy's right," Natsu smiled weakly. "You _are_ a cool toy. As a matter of fact, you're _too_ cool." As soon as he said those words, however, his heart began to sink. He sank to the ground, getting depressed himself. "I mean, what chance does a toy like me have against a _Gray Fullbuster: Space Hero_ action figure? All I could do is…" He pulled his pull-string, and his voice box spoke a recorded message, " _I've got a fire in my belly!_ " He bowed his head and muttered, "Why would Ken ever want to play with me when he's got you? _I'm_ the one who should be strapped to that rocket."

"Oh, Natsu…" Lucy whispered sadly. Her hand caressed Natsu's cheek, hoping that would relieve his sadness. But instead, he slumped against the crate.

Remorse weighed heavily on the pull-string Dragon Slayer's heart. He remembered how things were different before Lucy was missing, before Gray became Ken's new toy. Natsu's jealousy led both him and Gray towards certain danger, which culminated to their capture and imprisonment. Now that the space toy was strapped to a rocket, Natsu came to the heart-wrenching conclusion that his insecurities had all been for nothing; it was a mere façade to blanket his true feelings. Lucy was clever enough to realize it, and by understanding all he had been through, she can't help but feel sorry for her lover.

Natsu acted jealous and bitter towards Gray, but most of the time, he was alone.

Alone, that he would no longer be accepted by Ken... or anyone else.

Bit by bit, Gray recalled Lucy's words. She was right; Ken did love playing with him. Even though he hadn't been with the other toys a bit longer, he had seen sparkle in the little boy's eyes as he played with him and the others, heard his raucous laughter, and examined his joyous attitude. Gray lifted up his foot, where Ken had written his name. So what if he wasn't a real Space Hero? He was still bringing a child joy, just by being a toy. And he wasn't about to just sit back while that little boy was unhappy. At that moment, a glimmer of determination crossed his face.

"Listen, Gray. Forget about me," Natsu said glumly. "You should get out of here while you can."

"Not gonna happen," Lucy refused. "We'll all go together. That's what we agreed on. Celestial Treasure Hunter Lesson #15: Never leave a friend behind. Right, Gray?" She turned around and saw that Gray was no longer there, much to her confusion. "Gray? Where is he?"

It wasn't long before Natsu noticed Gray's disappearance as well. He couldn't really say he blamed the space toy for leaving him and his girlfriend behind. The chirping of birds outside indicated that morning had approached. When Takeshi woke up and saw that Gray was gone, he would find somebody else to blow up. Natsu closed his eyes, silently accepting his fate, while Lucy was curious to where Gray had gone.

Just then, a noise vibrated from the top of the crate, alarming the two. They looked up and saw, to their surprise, that Gray was pushing the toolbox off the crate.

Lucy laughed proudly, "All right, Gray! I knew you could help us!"

Natsu questioned, "But why? I thought you were…"

Gray grinned down at them, "What're you waiting for, guys? There's a kid over in that house who needs us. And we won't keep him waiting for long! Now let's get you two outta this thing!"

Natsu cheered happily, "Now we're talkin'! I'm all fired up now!"

Lucy smiled, "That's the spirit! We'll do this together!"

The three toys pushed the milk crate and the toolbox at once. With their combined strength, they managed to get the crate to move, albeit slowly.

Lucy encouraged, "Come on, guys! We can do this! Celestial Treasure Hunter Lesson #36: Never give up!"

Suddenly, a sound from outside caught the trio's attention. Gray looked out the window to see a giant truck painted in yellow pulling up in front of Ken's house.

Gray alerted, "Guys! It's the moving van!"

Natsu nodded, "Don't have to tell us twice!"

Lucy urged, "We gotta get outta here, now!"

The toys got back to work. Bracing himself between the toolbox and the wall, Gray propelled upwards, using every ounce of strength to push the toolbox forward. Likewise, Natsu and Lucy continued pushing the crate until there was finally enough space for them to get out.

"Sweet!" Lucy marveled. She jumped out, landing safely on her feet on the floor, followed by Natsu. "We're free!"

Natsu called up, "Snowman, we're out!"

"Almost… there…" Gray wheezed, obviously not hearing Natsu as he kept on pushing the toolbox. Finally, the object fell off the desk.

"Oh, crud!" Lucy yelped, before she dodged out of the way. Natsu, on the other hand, whimpered as the toolbox fell on him with a **CLANG** , followed by the crate. That **REALLY** hurt.

Gray forced himself not to gasp as he looked at Takeshi, thinking that he was about to wake up by the sudden noise. Luckily, the Toy Torturer was such a heavy sleeper, probably because he grunted in his sleep. "I wanna ride the pony…"

Gray sighed in relief, "He's thick-headed than I thought." Crawling over to the edge of the desk, he called down, "Is everybody okay down there?"

Lucy called out, "Natsu? Hey, Natsu! Are you alright?"

Natsu lifted himself up from under the toolbox, his body sprawled with random materials. He answered dizzily, "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm okay. I get toolboxes dumped on me every day."

Suddenly, the alarm clock rang! Natsu ducked back under the toolbox, Lucy hid under the underside of the crate, and Gray froze back. As the alarm clock fell off, Takeshi slowly came to, his eyes lightening up.

"Oh, yeah!" Takeshi remembered what today was. "Time for lift-off!" Shouting excitedly, he jumped out of bed, grabbed Gray, and unlocked the individual locks of his bedroom door. "To infinity and beyond! Whoo-hoo!"

By the time Takeshi dashed outside, Natsu and Lucy emerged from their hiding spots. The two dove towards the doorway and peered into the hall, only to see Zeke.

" **ZEKE!** " Lucy screamed.

Detecting the toys' presence, the bulldog barked wildly and ran to tear them apart. Screaming frantically, Natsu and Lucy tried to push the door closed. " **BACK! BACK! DOWN! DOWN!** " After a fierce struggle, they were able to close the door. They leaned against it, their breaths coming in pants.

Lucy stated, "Zeke's still outside. As long as he's around, we can't go anywhere."

Natsu pondered, "What're we gonna do? We have to save Gray, and fast."

"Well, we could ask _them_ for help," Lucy motioned Natsu to a certain crowd of disfigured toys emerging from the shadows.

"The Mutant Toys? That's right! They can help us!" Natsu beamed. For the first time since he had been in that room, he was actually happy to see them. He greeted, "Hey, guys!" Immediately, they scattered back into their hiding places. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Wait! Where are you going?!"

"I don't know. Maybe it had something to do with a certain guy mistaking them for cannibals," Lucy raised an eyebrow at Natsu.

"What?!" Natsu said shockingly. "I apologized to them! What did I miss?!"

Lucy frowned, "You're the one trying to hurt them. Why don't you figure it out?"

Desperate to reason with the Mutant Toys, Natsu spoke to them again, "Look, I know what I did was wrong, and I'm sorry for trying to hurt you. But please, listen! There's a good toy down there, and he's gonna be blown to bits in a few minutes, all because of me." The Mutant Toys cautiously peeked, but didn't fully come out. "We gotta save him. But we need your help," Natsu finished.

For a while, there was no response. However, Babyface timidly peeked out from under the bed, looking at the pull-string Dragon Slayer with an inquisitive look on her face.

"Please," Natsu begged. "He's my friend. And he's the only one I've got."

"Not true," Lucy placed a hand on Natsu's shoulder. She said assuredly, "You've got another friend. And she's gonna help you the best way she can, no matter what."

Natsu smiled warmly, "Thanks, Lucy."

Lucy turned to the Mutant Toys and spoke a loud and clear proclamation, "Listen up! A friend of ours is in danger, and we're the only ones who can help him. If we don't do something now, it's gonna be hard to fix someone blown to bits!" Everyone grew silent and listened. "So we're gonna have to work together. Look, I know things have been rough, but we can do anything if we work as a team! No more hiding. No more living in fear. No more torture! We need to fight back against Takeshi's plans to blow up Gray! Today will not be known as Freaky Friday…" She finished with a strong voice, "…it will be known as **Freedom Friday!** "

At that moment, Babyface signaled her fellow Mutant Toys by hitting one of her erector-set pinchers against Takeshi's metal bedpost. Little by little, the others came out, gathering around Natsu and Lucy. The two toys smiled in confidence; they actually trusted them! They were going to help save Gray, and in the process, get revenge on the boy who tormented them for so long.

"Thanks, guys," Lucy acknowledged. "You may be different toys, but you've got more heart than all of us in Ken's room put together." She turned to Natsu, "All right, Nat, what's our play?"

"Here's what we're gonna do," Natsu began. "We're gonna have to break a few rules, but if it works, it'll help everybody."

Everyone huddled up and listened. _Operation: Save Gray_ has begun.


	14. The Mutant Toys' Revenge

Next door, the movers cart out the last load of the Hirugashi family's stuff to the moving van. A forlorn Ken held his dragon-scaled scarf in one hand and Gray's cardboard spaceship in the other. He was leaving his childhood home behind, and he still couldn't find his two favorite toys. He wanted to cry, but he forced himself to stay strong for his mother's sake. Heaving a sad sigh, Ken knew that it was time to move on. And that day had finally come.

" _I just hope that, wherever Natsu and Gray are, they're safe,_ " Ken thought to himself.

The other house next door, Takeshi was in his backyard, carrying a bunch of materials in his arm from the toolshed. The first step of his plan was to construct something reminiscent of an actual spaceport, fantasizing that Gray was riding a rocket blasting off into space. Unfortunately, the rocket would instead blow him up into a million pieces instead of taking him up to a distant sea of stars. Nonetheless, Takeshi was content of his work, not caring whether or not Gray blew up. The outcome was all that mattered.

"Houston to Mission Control! Come in, Mission Control!" Takeshi was talking to no one in particular, except that he pretended to speak to an imaginary mission control. Dropping his materials next to an inanimate Gray, he continued, "The launch pad is being constructed."

* * *

Gray won't have much left on Earth, unless Natsu and Lucy come to his rescue, and fast.

While Zeke planted right outside Takeshi's bedroom door, poised to attack anything that exits, Natsu, Lucy, and the Mutant Toys were carrying out their well-laid plan. Lucy made a diagram of the house and yard, while Natsu relayed instructions.

Pointing to each spot with his pencil, Natsu elaborated, "All right, listen up. I need Pump Boze here, and Rabian the Duck here. Lilica Legs…" The fishing-legs toy named Lilica Legs stepped forward. "…you're with Rabian." The two toys nodded. Natsu continued, "Lucy, RollerMaru, and I don't move until we get the signal, got it?"

The Mutant Toys nodded in agreement. They were eager to get revenge on their cruel owner, and they would willingly follow Natsu's plan to do so.

Lucy said eagerly, "It's time for some payback. We're gonna save Gray and show Takeshi what happens when you mess with toys like us."

"I like your style, Lucy. It's toy season!" Natsu smiled in anticipation. He stood up and signaled, "All right, guys! Let's move!"

Immediately, the toys scattered, commencing the operation. Rabian the Duck and Lilica Legs rushed over to a heating grate and pulled the face plate off the wall, before disappearing into the heating duct. Rabian hopped around until he stopped at an intersection. Motioning to Lilica Legs with a quack, he hopped down the corner.

* * *

Natsu and Lucy hopped on RollerMaru and directed their attentions to Walking Tomy, a Takara Tomy car with baby arms and legs. "Wind up Keroro!" Natsu instructed. Walking Tomy obliged, winding Keroro up.

"Grab the knob!" Lucy ordered. Babyface, Moka-Bobo, and Hand-in-the-Box stacked up on top of each other near the door. Hand-in-the-Box's rubber hand popped out of the box and grabbed the knob, and Moka-Bobo gave a signal to Natsu and Lucy, as did Walking Tomy. Time for Phase 2.

* * *

Rabian and Lilica Legs made their way to the porch outside, or rather, above it. Rabian pulled out the porch light and extended his neck out of the hole to check that the coast was clear. Phase 3 may now commence…

"Wait for the signal," Natsu reminded the other toys back in the room as they manned their positions. The next step needed to be executed timely and perfectly.

Grabbing Lilica Legs' hook, Rabian attached it to the back of his neck and jumped out through the hole, letting himself fall until he reached the front door. He swung back and forth, back and forth, until he was able to hit the doorbell.

 **DING-DONG!** Now's their chance!

" **GO!** " Natsu and Lucy shouted. In response, Hand-in-the-Box threw open the door. Zeke, who had been waiting outside the whole time, growled, but before he could even think of trying to get inside the room, Walking Tomy released Keroro's key. The wind-up frog went zooming outside, successfully catching the bulldog's attention. Zeke barked viciously and chased after Keroro, as the other toys climbed onto RollerMaru with Natsu and Lucy.

"Awesome!" Natsu said approvingly. "Now let's get outta here!"

Lucy remarked, "I have to admit, Natsu, Keroro speeding down the hallway to distract Zeke was a genius idea. I should've thought of that a long time ago!"

Natsu chuckled, "Like you have to ask? C'mon, everybody! To the yard!" With that, RollerMaru used his arms to propel the skateboard and the crew out into the hallway.

"I'll get it!" Asuka called from downstairs as the doorbell kept on ringing, courtesy of Rabian the Duck. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" She walked over to the door and opened it to find no one outside, except for Rabian, who slumped to the ground without being noticed. Zeke continued chasing Keroro, following him down the stairs and out the door, unwittingly knocking a distracted Asuka over by bursting through her legs.

" **AUGH!** Zeke!" Asuka yelled in annoyance. Unseen, Rabian caught Keroro in his arms, and Lilica Legs hoisted the two of them up with her reel, before replacing the bulb light. Zeke suddenly realized that he had been tricked, but before he could get back inside, Asuka pulled herself up and grabbed the door's edge with a glare. "Stupid dog!" She slammed the door, locking Zeke outside. The bulldog could only bark to get attention, but Asuka didn't care as she stormed off. That mangy mutt was just as annoying as her brother.

With Asuka gone, Natsu, Lucy, and the Mutant Toys zoomed down the stairs and round the corner, heading straight for the kitchen. Picking up speed, RollerMaru shot underneath the kitchen table and through the chair legs, straight towards the pet door.

"Lean back!" Natsu yelled. The others obliged and pushed back, causing RollerMaru to bend over. They catapulted through the pet door, before they landed safely in the bushes.

"Perfect landing," Lucy commented. "Where's Gray?"

"Over there!" Natsu gestured. He and Lucy parted some leaves to see Gray propped upright on top of a barrel designed to look like a launch pad. Takeshi was still in the toolshed, finishing preparations to launch the helpless space toy into space.

"Uh, Mission Control, is the launch pad construction complete?" Takeshi spoke, once again talking like an astronaut. He then buzzed with simulated static, "Roger, rocket is now secured to guard wire. We are currently obtaining the ignition sticks. Countdown will commence momentarily. Stand by…"

Natsu and Lucy whipped around to see Rabian, Keroro, and Lilica Legs emerge from a drain pipe. They exchanged a thumbs-up, indicating that the final phase of their plan was underway.

"Let's go," Natsu whispered. The toys dispersed out of the bushes to their designated places in the yard.

"Hey, Mom! Where are the matches?" Takeshi called out. "Oh, wait. Here they are. Never mind!"

At that moment, Gray spotted Natsu running over to him. He whispered, "Natsu! Good timing! Mind helping me outta this thing?"

"Shhh…" Natsu shushed, a few feet away from Gray.

"What?" Gray asked, confused.

"It's okay, Snowman," Natsu assured with a sly smile. "Everything's under control." Without another word, he fell limp.

"Natsu, what're you doing?!" Gray hissed. Before he could say or do anything else, Takeshi came out of the toolshed, and the space toy froze back.

"Houston, all systems are go. Requesting permission to launch…" Takeshi's eyes suddenly fell on Natsu nearby. "Hey, how'd you get out here?" He walked over and picked him up, raising an eyebrow. He didn't recall bringing the pull-string Dragon Slayer along for the ride. Just then, another twisted idea came into his mind as he smirked. "Oh, well. You and I will have a cookout later." With a chuckle, Takeshi tossed him onto a barbeque grill, before sticking a match into a small pocket of his one-sleeved waistcoat.

"Houston, do we have permission to launch?" Pulling a match out of the matchbox, he spoke into it like it was a walkie-talkie. "Roger, permission granted. You are confirmed at T-minus ten seconds."

Takeshi struck the match, lighting it.

"And counting… 10, 9, 8…"

Lucy and the Mutant Toys hurried into their final positions.

"…7, 6, 5…"

Natsu glared at Takeshi from the barbecue grill. This was it. Now or never.

"…4, 3, 2, 1…!"

" _Reach for the sky!_ " a familiar voice sample boomed, catching the Toy Torturer's attention.

"Huh?" Takeshi dropped his match.

" _This town ain't big enough for the two of us._ " The boy traced the source to Natsu, who appeared to be speaking through his voice box.

"What?" Takeshi blinked, walking closer to Natsu. That pull-string Dragon Slayer doll couldn't have talked on its own— could it?

" _Somebody's poisoned the waterhole._ " Takeshi picked Natsu up and stared at him.

"It's busted," he scoffed. But just as he was about to toss Natsu away…

" _Who're you callin' 'busted,' buster?!_ " Natsu's voice box snapped. Takeshi froze. He stared at the salmon-haired toy again, this time with wide-eyed shock. " _That's right. I'm talkin' to ya, Takeshi Sakamoto._ " Takeshi turned Natsu over. Oddly, his mouth didn't show any signs of movement. How was he able to talk to him without pulling his pull-string?! " _We don't like being blown up, Takeshi, or smashed, or ripped apart._ "

"'We?!'" Takeshi felt his body trembling, impacted by the pull-string Dragon Slayer's statement. Though he tried his best not to have a panic attack, he feared where that part of the discussion would lead to.

" _That's right,_ " Natsu's voice box gave a clear answer. " _Your toys!_ "

That was the cue. Behind Takeshi, an Imitatia doll rose up from the sandbox and marched towards him like a tiny zombie. Walking Tomy skittered out from the sand, and a monster truck toy rose out. Gray watched with surprise. Keroro, a headless Taurus doll, and an armless Loke doll with a nail through his head came out of the mud. Takeshi's mouth was agape, his body shivering uncontrollably from the toys' sudden awakening in a classic "Night of the Living Dead" fashion.

No… This couldn't be happening! Toys are just objects! They couldn't possibly come to life! At least, that's what Takeshi was lead to believe…

Next to him, Zeke's water bowl flipped over to reveal the squeaky Nikora, now dirty and torn, and it joined the march. A terrified Takeshi backed away, only to feel something land on his head. He looked up and screamed in horror upon seeing Babyface, her erector-set legs digging through his head. He stumbled backwards as Lilica Legs reeled Babyface back up, before a rubber hand grabbed his foot. Takeshi let out another scream, and he noticed Hand-in-the-Box, Lulu, and the Wyvern coming out on RollerMaru, with Ariawheel next to him.

Breathing heavily, the scared Toy Torturer was surrounded by the Mutant Toys, the very creations he abused, tortured, and mutilated for so long. Their revenge was finally at hand…

" _From now on, you must take good care of your toys!_ " Natsu's voice box suggested. " _Because if you don't, we'll find out, Takeshi. We toys can see…_ _ **everything.**_ " The salmon-haired toy's head spun around on its own a complete 360.

What happened next was the straw that broke the toy camel's back. Natsu's face suddenly sprung to life, giving Takeshi a vicious glare. "So play _nice…_ " he growled.

And suddenly, Lucy appeared on the boy's left shoulder. Feeling the blonde-haired doll's feet planted on it, he turned to see her smiling right before his very eyes! "And be _good!_ " Lucy finished Natsu's suggestion with a sly, slick tone.

" **WAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGHHHH!** " Takeshi screamed in hysterical fright, much terror rising than he had ever felt. He couldn't take this anymore! It's like the Devil was after him! Tossing Natsu and Lucy into the air, he bolted into the house, accompanied by his screams. Natsu landed on the ground, and Lucy was caught in his arms. The two watched with the Mutant Toys as their former tormentor disappeared, never to bare the sight of those living… monsters… ever again.

" **WE DID IT!** " The toys danced and celebrated. The plan worked! Not only was Gray safe, but the Mutant Toys had finally gotten back at Takeshi for everything he did to them. With any luck, it would take a long time before he even _looked_ at a toy again. At long last, the reign of the Toy Torturer was over.

"We did it! We did it!" Lucy cried happily, giving Natsu a very tight hug.

"Ha-ha-ha! Yes!" Natsu laughed proudly, reciprocating the hug.

* * *

Inside the house, Asuka came downstairs with her Sue doll in hand. She noticed her brother, scared out of his mind, running up to her.

" **THE TOYS! THE TOYS ARE** ** _ALIVE!_** " Takeshi shrieked. He then saw the Sue doll Asuka was holding, and the endless shivering in his body started to kick in. "N-N-Nice… toy…"

A smirk crossed Asuka's face as she saw the opportunity to get some revenge of her own. After all, Takeshi ruined _her_ toys, too. She held the Sue doll in front of Takeshi, who immediately screamed.

"What's wrong, Takeshi?" Asuka taunted, chasing her cowardly brother upstairs. "Don't you wanna play with Sue?"

* * *

Outside, Natsu, Lucy, and the Mutant Toys were still celebrating. And who could blame them? Not only had they gotten back at Takeshi, but they did it especially that he probably needed therapy.

"Awesome work, guys. Good job!" Natsu congratulated. "Man, coming out of the ground, I didn't think of that. That was a stroke of genius." He turned to Lucy with a sly smile, "But the best idea of all was Lucy appearing on his shoulder out of nowhere. It sure scared the wits outta him."

Lucy giggled blushingly, "Oh, Natsu. You're such a tease. I'm just your friendly neighborhood Celestial Treasure Hunter doll, doing my job."

"And you've done it with flying colors," Natsu smiled contently. "Could've have done it without you, Lu. If it wasn't for you, this plan wouldn't have started."

Lucy wrapped her arms around him, "Now that Takeshi's out of the picture, we can finally rest easy. The Mutant Toys are free, Gray's safe…"

Natsu grinned, bending her over with his arms, "And best of all, I've reunited with the girl of my dreams. Everything's alright now."

"Natsu…" Lucy sighed passionately, and the two leaned in for a kiss when…

"Natsu," Gray called, interrupting the moment.

As the two straightened up, Natsu climbed up the launch pad Gray was affixed to. He responded, "Yeah?"

"Thanks," Gray held his hand out, a genuine smile in his face.

"No problem, Snowman," Natsu smiled back and shook the space toy's hand. In the midst of all the chaos and strife, the Salamander's animosity for the Space Hero burned away, and from the ashes, sprouted a plant of newfound friendship.

Lucy looked up the launch pad and smiled to herself, "It's official: Dragon Slayer and Space Hero are friends. Celestial Treasure Hunter Lesson #99: Rivalries can turn to friendships."

Just then, a can horn honked next door. Mrs. Hirugashi's voice called, "Everybody say, 'bye house!'"

"Guys, the van!" Gray alerted, looking through the fence to see the Hirugashi family van about to depart.

"Bye, house!" Ken's voice echoed.

Natsu and Lucy didn't need a second invite. The blonde-haired toy climbed up the launch pad, and she helped Natsu hoist off the pole Gray was tied to. The three toys hopped from the launch pad and dashed for the fence, never bothering to remove the rocket.

"There's an opening at the fence, straight ahead!" Lucy pointed towards a hole in the fence.

"We gotta run! Thanks, guys!" Natsu shouted hastily, waving at the Mutant Toys as he, Gray, and Lucy left the yard. They would celebrate coming out of Takeshi's house in one piece later. For now, they had to focus on getting themselves back to Ken.


	15. Race to the Moving Van

Natsu, Lucy, and Gray had no time to waste. With their lives and Ken's happiness at stake, the trio was ever determined to catch up with their owner. The van engine started, and the Hirugashis were ready to depart to their new home.

"Hurry!" Natsu slipped through the opening in the fence Lucy found.

"We're right behind you!" Lucy came next, and Gray was the last to go.

"Come on!" Gray tried to fit through the fence, but was unable to, on account of the rocket still strapped to his back. Natsu and Lucy, who failed to notice this, climbed up to the van's rear bumper.

"That was easy," Natsu breathed. "Everybody's in the van."

"Uh, not everyone," Lucy pointed at Gray, who was stuck.

"You guys go! I'll catch up!" Gray insisted.

"In case you didn't notice, space guy, you're stuck," Lucy stated. "That stupid rocket is getting in the way! If the van drives, we'll leave you behind at this rate!"

Gray shot back, "I can handle anything on my own. Ain't no fence, rocket, or road can hold this space toy down. Just go! Go without me!"

"Not gonna happen," Natsu said adamantly. "We've been through a lot together, and we're just gonna leave you here? It's not about who's the best toy anymore. To be honest, I don't care if I'm Ken's favorite toy or not. The only thing that matters is that we stay together."

Lucy agreed, "That's right. Because you're our friend. And a friend never leaves a friend behind! C'mon!"

Natsu and Lucy jumped off the van as it started rolling along the pavement, running back to the fence. The blonde-haired toy grabbed Gray's shoulders and pushed him down, and the salmon-haired toy fit the rocket through the fence, pulling him out. The three of them started running, but it was hopeless, as the van drove out of their view.

Natsu groaned, "No good. The car's gone."

Lucy interrupted, "Wait a sec. Where's the moving van?"

The answer came in the form of a noise of giant wheels screeching the road. The three toys turned to see a large vehicle driving right over them. Screaming, they ducked and covered their heads until the vehicle passed by. Looking up, they saw that the vehicle was actually the moving van. They could still make it!

"Come on!" Gray urged, as he, Natsu, and Lucy gave chase.

"That was one crazy adventure, wasn't it?" Lucy asked.

"Yeah, it wouldn't hurt to have a little adventure once in a while," Natsu nodded. "Wait for me!"

Of course, their troubles weren't over just yet. Zeke, who was sleeping out on the porch, happened to see the three toys, and bared his teeth with a growl.

* * *

Gray ran up close to the van with Natsu and Lucy a few paces behind.

Natsu wheezed, "He's fast! He could join the Toy Olympics!"

Lucy panted, "Yeah, assuming the Toy Olympics _did_ happen in real life…"

Spotting a strap hanging from the back of the van, Gray leaped and successfully grabbed it. He climbed up the strap and made it onto the bumper. Soon, Lucy managed to perform the same tactic. The last one, Natsu, tried to get the strap, but kept missing.

"You can do it, Pyro!" Gray encouraged.

"Don't give up!" Lucy urged.

Increasing his speed, Natsu gave a mighty leap and caught hold of the strap. He cried happily, "I made it!"

Gray smirked, "Way to go!"

That moment of bliss was short lived when they heard barking behind them. Gray's eyes widened in fear, and Lucy followed suit. She exclaimed, "Oh, no! Not him!"

"Who?" Natsu turned around to see, to his horror, Zeke right behind him! The salmon-haired toy screamed as the vicious bulldog managed to bite down one of his legs.

" **NATSU!** " Lucy and Gray screamed out.

" **GET AWAY, YOU STUPID DOG! DOWN, DOWN!** " Natsu yelled. He tried to kick Zeke away with his free leg, but to no avail. If anything, it just made Zeke angrier. He kept on tugging the pull-string Dragon Slayer, slowly pulling him down to the end of the strap.

"Stay away from my boyfriend, you mangy mutt!" Lucy snarled. She pulled out her _Fleuve d'étoiles_ and got into a defensive stance.

"Is that a weapon?" Gray asked.

"It may be plastic and extendable, but it helps!" Lucy quoted. With a furious shout, she swished her toy whip multiple times against Zeke's face, causing him to slow down a bit.

"Hold on, Natsu!" Gray shouted. True enough, Natsu was only holding by one hand.

"I can't do it! I can't hold it any longer!" Natsu cried in defeat. "Take care of Ken for me!"

" **NOOOOOOOOOOO!** " In a move that was both very brave and very stupid, Gray and Lucy leaped off the truck, landing on Zeke's head. The space toy grabbed the bulldog's eyelids and snapped them hard, while the blonde-haired toy swished her _Fleuve d'étoiles_ against the nose. Zeke yelped, causing him to let go of Natsu. But the bad news was, Zeke had Gray and Lucy.

"Guys!" Natsu yelled. The demonic bulldog started shaking Lucy and Gray back and forth, and Natsu gritted his teeth with a newfound determination. Climbing back up to the van, he undid the locks and tried to pull up the back door. Thankfully, the truck came to a stop at a traffic light, and the door slid up with Natsu hanging on. Upon landing, he looked around at the several cardboard boxes inside the truck, until his eyes fell on one landed "Ken's Toys." And just like that, he had an idea.

* * *

Meanwhile, Zeke was still shaking Gray and Lucy around, until he flung them out of his jaw and under a parked car. Luckily for them, the car's underside was too small for Zeke to fit in.

"Now what?" Lucy worried.

* * *

Inside the truck, Natsu ripped open the box containing Ken's other toys. The toys were forced to wince and moan at the sudden brightness. "Huh? What is it? What's going on?"

"Are we there already?" Erza asked tiredly.

Looking up, Happy was startled to notice the one toy he thought he'd never see again. He said, "Natsu? How did you…"

"Natsu?!" the other toys mused in unison. Natsu gritted his teeth; the one thing he was looking for wasn't in here. Without a word, Natsu pushed the box away, ignoring everyone's questions. Turning his attention to another box labeled "More Toys," he rummaged through it, pulling out and tossing aside several objects.

"What's going on?" Cana wondered. "What's he taking?"

"A-HA! There you are!" Natsu smirked. He pulled a familiar toy out of the box: the RC car Fireball Dragion, along with his remote.

"What's that connivin' criminal up to?" Gajeel said suspiciously.

"Here goes nothing..." Natsu breathed. He rolled Dragion to the edge of the van, and kicked him out.

The other toys screamed in shock and alarm at what they've witnessed. " **HE'S AT IT AGAIN!** " Erza exclaimed.

Ignoring the toys, Natsu switched the remote on and drove Dragion out into the street, steering past Zeke and under the car where Gray and Lucy were hiding.

Lucy exclaimed, "Fireball Dragion? Is that you?!"

Gray recognized, "I know you. You're that car who tried to run me over."

Dragion whirred happily in response, and at the same time, was relieved to see Gray and Lucy again.

Gray grinned, "Pyro's givin' us a ride home!"

Lucy cheered, "Way to go, Natsu!"

* * *

Natsu quipped, "Two toys speeding back home, comin' up!" At that moment, the traffic light turned green, allowing the family van and truck to cross the intersection.

" **GET HIM!** " Gajeel roared. He and the rest of the toys flipped their boxes over, and they moved to attack Natsu.

"Uh-oh…" Natsu said worriedly, noticing the angry toys advancing on him. Nonetheless, the pull-string Dragon Slayer continued to steer the wheel, while trying to avoid the hostilities. He had to spring Lucy and Gray to the moving van before his ex-friends tear him apart!

Lucy and Gray jumped on Dragion, and the three toys zoomed out the car and towards the moving truck, with Zeke hot on their trail.

"Hey, F.D.! Long time no see!" Lucy spoke to Dragion as they drove.

"Drive now, talk later!" Gray insisted.

"No, no, no, no! Wait!" Natsu tried to reason with the other toys, but his words went unheeded. Laxus picked him up and spun him over his head like a propeller. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!"

At the same time, Dragion drove in circles in the middle of the street around Zeke.

"Whoa! Hey! What're! You're! Doing?!" Gray asked, getting dizzy.

"It's! Not! Him! It's! Natsu!" Lucy protested back.

Laxus tossed Natsu aside, and Dragion was able to drive normally again. Zeke wasn't easily deterred, as he kept chasing after the RC car.

" **METAL PILE!** " Letting out a wild cry, Gajeel jumped from above a box and delivered an elbow drop on Natsu's chest, causing him to accidentally hit a button on Dragion's controller. Dragion hopped in the air, tossing Lucy and Gray up and off. They managed to land back, but facing backwards.

Just then, Gray and Lucy looked behind them to see another wall of cross traffic that the truck and moving van passed by. The two toys screamed, preparing themselves for the end, only for Dragion to drive straight into the intersection and get past the crowd of cars, safely and miraculously. Zeke followed them into the traffic, but skidded to a halt just missing a car. Luckily for the dog, he wasn't hit, though the incident caused several other cars to swerve around him. Pretty soon, Zeke was trapped in the street, unable to get out because of all the cars around him. He was unable to do anything but bark at the drivers yelling furiously at him.

Gray and Lucy sighed in relief, as they and Dragion got further away from Zeke.

* * *

At the moving van, the mob of toys picked Natsu up and was about to throw him out on the street. Some who believed in him, like Mirajane, could only watch helplessly.

"No, wait! You don't understand!" Natsu protested futilely. "Gray and Lucy are out there! We gotta help them!"

"Toss 'im overboard!" Gajeel yelled.

" **NO, NO, NO! WAIT!** " Natsu screamed, trying to get the toys to listen to him. Unfortunately, they tossed him off the truck, and the pull-string Dragon Slayer went bouncing along the street. With Dragion's remote control still in hand, Natsu looked up at the moving truck, which rolled away with the toys cheering victoriously.

"So long, Natsu!" Gajeel's voice called. Natsu groaned in exasperation; now that his fellow toys duped him a third time, what else could happen now? He turned around and was forced to duck when another car passed over him. After it left, Natsu pulled himself up and backed away.

" **NATSSSSSUUUUU!** " The pull-string Dragon Slayer didn't have time to react as he got swept up by Dragion, with Lucy and Gray still boarding him. He sat alongside his new space toy friend and his girlfriend with the remote still in hand.

"Hey, thanks for the ride!" Natsu smiled.

" **LOOK OUT!** " Gray screamed in alarm, pointing ahead. The toys were about to slam into the rear tire of the car that passed over Natsu earlier. Thinking quickly, Natsu gave the steering wheel on Dragion's remote a hard left, causing the RC car to miss the tire by inches and move under the car, to avoid being crushed.

Lucy shrieked, "We almost got turned into roadkill!"

"Fair enough," Natsu nodded. He added in determination, "Now, let's catch up to that truck!" He flicked the switch from "ON" to "TURBO," increasing Dragion's speed ten-fold, as he zoomed off after the moving truck.

Back on the moving van, everyone was celebrating for their accomplishment of defeating the one toy that could destroy them all. Mirajane, Happy, and Wendy, on the other hand, were depressed, preferring not to enjoy the victory party. They just wanted to be alone.

Alzack Connell decided to look out the open back door. He then gasped upon seeing something squinting on the street. Adjusting the Connells' trademark Cowboy Binoculars, his eyes widened upon realizing what it was.

"Guys!" Alzack shouted. "Natsu's riding Dragion!"

"What?!" The toys exclaimed shockingly as they gathered around to look.

"And Gray and Lucy are with him!" Alzack added excitedly.

Mirajane picked up the Cowboy Binoculars and looked through them. Much to her complete happiness, Natsu was riding on Dragion at breakneck speed. Not just with Lucy, but Gray as well!

"It _is_ Gray!" Mirajane confirmed. "Natsu and Lucy were telling the truth!"

" **AYE!** " Happy jumped up and down excitedly. "I knew it! I knew it! Natsu's still my best buddy!"

"I knew Natsu would never do such a thing," Erza smiled. "I always believed in him."

"Me too!" Wendy raised a hand.

"Me three!" Lisanna added.

At the same time, everyone was stunned. All this time, the pull-string Dragon Slayer was honest in his words. Gray was still alive, and they threw Natsu out under the belief that he murdered the space toy!

"What have we done?" Laki exclaimed.

"Great. Now I feel guilt," Kinana whined.

"'Toss him overboard,' huh?" Laxus turned to Gajeel with a look of disdain on his face. The Iron Dragon Slayer action figure chuckled sheepishly as the rest of the toys followed suit, giving disappointed looks at him for the way he treated Natsu.

Lisanna crossed her arms, "Really, Gajeel, what were you thinking?"

Happy frowned, "We're super-duper disappointed in you, Gajeel."

Mirajane scolded, "You accused Natsu for a terrible crime he didn't commit!"

Elfman added, "You tricked us. Not manly."

Wendy stated, "That's a big no-no, Gajeel."

Gajeel snapped back, "Oh, like you were any better! You're as guilty as—"

Before he could finish, he was knocked out cold by a sucker punch from Laxus. He said sarcastically, "He's done."

* * *

"We're almost there!" Natsu said, as he, Gray, Lucy, and Dragion got closer to the van.

"Lower the ramp!" Mirajane shouted.

"On it! Thunder Legion, on my mark!" Laxus issued an order to his friends/bodyguards Freed Justine, Evergreen, and Bickslow. The four toys skipped over to a lever and gripped on the handle, "On three. One… two… three!" With their combined might, they pulled the lever, and the ramp began to lower.

"Up ahead!" Lucy observed the toys' actions. "They're lowering the ramp! We're closing in!"

"Look out!" Gray alerted. Dragion pulled back moments before the heavy ramp slammed into the road, causing sparks to fly everywhere from the metal scraping the pavement.

"Hold on! I'll get you to safety! **Requip!** " Erza pressed a button at the center of her armor, instantly transforming Heart Kreuz into Heaven's Wheel. " **Heaven's Wheel Armor!** Natsu, Lucy, Gray, hold on to my sword!" Taking out a toy longsword, she fired an extendable rope from the hilt, allowing the blade to shoot off the truck and towards Dragion. Natsu handed the remote to Gray and caught the rope in time.

"Good going, Erza!" Happy cheered.

Unfortunately, Erza's sword rope started to stretch out, and the crimson-haired toy was losing her grip. Elfman, Laki, and Kinana grabbed Erza's hands, struggling to keep her grip on her sword.

"Natsu!" Erza shrieked. "The rope is outstretching! Speed up!"

"Speed up!" Natsu and Lucy screamed in unison.

"I can't! The batteries are running out!" Gray responded. True enough, Dragion's headlight eyes were beginning to sag, exhausted and barely able to move on.

"You should've saved some batteries first!" Lucy said irritably. "Typical of Natsu, always acting before thinking!"

Natsu gripped the outstretched sword rope tightly with both hands as the truck continued driving, weaving Dragion side-to-side like a water skier.

* * *

In the Hirugashi family's car, with Ken and his mother preoccupied, Maka, who was sitting in the front of her baby seat, was listening to _Masayume Chasing_ from BoA when she saw the reflection of the toys in the rearview mirror. She squealed delightfully, blissfully unaware of the dire situation the toys were in.

* * *

The sword rope was stretched to its limit. To make matters worse, Erza was about to lose her grip on Natsu! Erza cried frantically, "I can't hold on much longer!"

"Erza, hang on!" Natsu encouraged. He didn't want to let go, nor did he want Erza to give up.

Despite its best efforts, however, the sword rope slipped from Natsu's hands, and it went flying back into the truck. Finally, Dragion's battery died, and he stopped right in the middle of the street. Natsu, Lucy, and Gray watched on as the family van and the moving truck disappeared from sight.

"Great!" Natsu shouted sarcastically, with Gray tossing Dragion's remote to the ground in frustration. They almost had it. They were this close to reuniting with Ken!

"Just our luck," Lucy groaned, rubbing her head in agitation. "Now we're never gonna get home! We'll be lost toys again!"

Gray sighed sadly, "Well, it just goes to show you, guys… You fly around the galaxy until you run out of gas, and now you're stuck in the endless void of space. We might as well fly with an even better rocket."

"A rocket…?" Lucy repeated the last word of Gray's statement, until something dawned on her. "A rocket!" She turned to Natsu and Gray with a joyful expression, an idea flashing into her head. "Natsu, Gray! The rocket!"

"The rocket?" Gray was confused at first, until the realization hit him in the form of a certain thing strapped to his back. "The rocket!"

"The match!" Natsu added excitedly. Putting his hand inside his waistcoat, he pulled out the match that Takeshi put into his pocket earlier. "Yes! I never thought I'd say this, but thank you, Takeshi!" Striking the match against one of Dragion's wheels, he held it up to the fuse and lit it up.

The three toys laughed in anticipation as they hurdled themselves on Dragion. Natsu yelled happily, "All right!"

Lucy cheered, "You did it!"

Gray announced, "Next stop, Ken!"

Suddenly, Lucy's smile disappeared as she realized something. "Wait a minute." She turned to Natsu with an incredulous look, "Did you just light a rocket?"

Natsu nodded, "Yeah. So?"

Gray explained, "He lit the rocket so that we could boost all the way to the moving van."

"For the record, it's a firework, not a booster," Lucy stated. "And do you know what fireworks do?"

Natsu was about to guess, but his face went blank with a dry look, understanding what Lucy meant. "Wait a minute…"

Gray added dreadfully, "You mean…"

" **FIREWORKS EXPLODE—** " No sooner had the words left Lucy's mouth than the rocket went off, causing them to zip forward. Speeding along the dividing line in the road, it easily passed car after car as Natsu, Lucy, and Gray hung onto Dragion for dear life.

* * *

Back on the van, the other toys were trying to console the remorseful Erza. The crimson-haired toy grimaced, "I'm a disgrace. I failed to save them. I should've held on longer…"

Alzack, who was still watching the road with the Cowboy Binoculars, shouted excitedly, "Look! Look! It's Natsu, Gray, and Lucy coming up fast!" The other toys gathered around him, their hopes restored.

"Natsu!" Wendy and Happy cheered.

The rocket's velocity was so intense that it lifted Natsu, Lucy, Gray, and Dragion up into the air. Gray held onto Natsu's mid-section, as he held onto Lucy's mid-section, as they blasted off, with Natsu letting go of Dragion, flying him into the truck.

" **TAKE COVER!** " Cana screamed. Everyone managed to get out of the way, except for Happy, who was knocked away, scattering his body parts all over.

* * *

Natsu, Lucy, and Gray flew higher and higher into the air, the three watching as the moving truck shrunk to a dot. The salmon-haired toy cursed his stupidity; what was he thinking?! That was the same rocket Takeshi tried to blow up Gray with! Now three of them were going to get blown to pieces!

" **WE'RE GONNA DIE! WE'RE GONNA DIE! GAME OVER, MAN! GAME OVER!** " Natsu yelled hysterically.

" **THIS IS THE PART WHERE WE BLOW UP!** " Lucy screamed likewise.

"Not today!" Gray spoke those words with much confidence and determination. He pressed the red button on his chest, and his Ice Wings popped out, severing the tape that held him to the rocket, which blew up above them. The three toys plummeted a long descent, and Natsu and Lucy couldn't stop themselves from screaming as the thought of them being squished against the ground haunted them.

Nothing of the sort happened. Instead, Gray soared through the air, just as easily as if he _were_ the hero that, up until recently, he believed himself to be. Natsu and Lucy's mouths fell open as they looked at the ground. They were flying! The toys were actually flying!

"Hey, Gray!" Natsu cried in disbelief. "You're flying!"

"This isn't flying," Gray smiled. "This is _falling with style_."

"The manufacturer was wrong! They claim you're not a flying toy, but you really _are!_ " Lucy squealed. " **YOU CAN FLY! SPACE TOYS CAN FLY!** "

Natsu and Lucy laughed excitedly and spread their arms out, enjoying the feeling of flying. " **To infinity and beyond!** " They shouted those words as loud and proud as the wind. Gray grinned to himself that his new friends used the same catchphrase he spoke.

The three toys glided towards the moving truck, but to Natsu's surprise, they passed over it. He said, "Uh, guys? We missed the truck."

Gray answered, "We're not aiming for the truck."

Natsu asked, "Then what are we aiming for?"

Lucy giggled, "Isn't that obvious?"

Before Natsu could question what she meant, the Hirugashi family car came into view. Gray pressed his button, deactivating his Ice Wings, and he, Natsu, and Lucy fell through the sun roof into a cardboard box next to Ken. The boy looked up in surprise, and turned around to see a wonderful sight— somehow, by some miracle, his two favorite toys— and a toy he hadn't seen in a long time— were back!

"Oh, wow!" Ken shouted happily.

"What? What is it?" Mrs. Hirugashi asked.

"Natsu! Gray! And… Lucy!" Ken answered, pulling them out of the box. "It's my old Lucy doll! I thought she was gone forever!"

"Oh, great! You found them!" Mrs. Hirugashi said happily. "Where were they?"

"Here in the car!" Ken answered.

"See, what did I tell you?" Mrs. Hirugashi replied in an 'I-told-you-so' voice. "Right where you left them."

* * *

Ken hugged Natsu, Lucy, and Gray happily. Unknown to him or his mom, the three toys winked at each other, with the blonde-haired toy giving a kiss to the salmon-haired boy's cheek. The nightmare was over. The three toys reunited with Ken Hirugashi, and they found themselves propelling to a whole new beginning.

Back at the Sakamoto household, Takeshi was trying to explain to his mom and dad what happened to him recently. "Mom, Dad, I swear! The toys came alive! They're alive, yes! All of them!"

The parents looked at each other, before Mrs. Sakamoto said dryly, "Takeshi, we should send you to therapy twice a week. Whatever story you told us is crazy."

Of course, no one could hear or see certain toys hiding away in the shadows, snickering at Takeshi's misfortune.


	16. A Happy Christmas Ending

A couple of months later, Christmas, to be exact, things were back to normal. Ken and his family were settled in their new household, Natsu and Gray were friends, Lucy was welcomed back with open arms, and all was right with the world. As the snow fell gently outside, Ken, Maka, and Mrs. Hirugashi were sitting around their Christmas tree, getting ready to open their presents.

"Which one can I open first?" Ken asked anxiously.

"Let's let Maka open one," Mrs. Hirugashi suggested. Unseen to either of them, Mest Gryder was hiding in the tree. Moving an ornament aside, he turned to the M.C. Troops, who were holding the baby monitor wedged between the branches of the Christmas tree. As always, they were letting the other toys know who or what would be joining them on the other side. _Operation: Christmas_ had begun.

* * *

In Ken's new bedroom, the other baby monitor was stationed atop the nightstand. Natsu sat on the edge of the bed alongside Gray, expectantly listening as the monitor crackled with static, accompanied with Mest's voice over it. " _Phoenix Priestess, this is Doranbolt. Come in, Phoenix Priestess. Maka's opening her first present._ "

Cana signaled, "Heads up, everybody! It's showtime!"

The other toys halted their activity and hurried over to listen. Wendy gasped, "Oh, it's time!"

Months had passed since the fateful incident that separated Natsu and Gray from Ken, but things took a turn for the better. The moment the Hirugashis found a new home, Natsu, Gray, and Lucy celebrated a heartfelt, emotional reunion with the other toys. Tears were shed, parties were hosted, and amends were made. Levy was the most emotional of all, truly relieved to have seen her best friend/customer for the first time in a year.

Natsu admitted to his friends that he purposely attempted to push Gray behind the desk so that Ken would take him to Zodiac Planet instead, and apologized for his behavior. It was that rude, erratic, insecure behavior that got everyone in trouble to begin with. Nonetheless, now that the gang was reunited, all was forgiven.

The toys were anxious and excited of the story Natsu, Lucy, and Gray told them: the story of how three lost toys survived the dangers of Takeshi's room and scared the living tar out of the Toy Torturer. They were amused and relieved, but most of the time, disappointed that they would never witness what happened.

As time passed, the fear that once plagued the toys of the thought of being replaced was gone. Through all the experiences they've had, they made a vow to never fear competition from the new toys, but to welcome them into Ken's collection of toys with open arms, to accept them as a part of their family. After all, toys weren't about being the best, but doing the best they could to bring happiness to a child, and be there for their owner when needed.

As the toys gathered around the monitor, Natsu was about to walk off with the others, but he felt something grab him by the neck and pulled him backwards. That someone turned out to be Lucy, who used her _Fleuve d'étoiles_ to drag him towards her. The blonde-haired toy smiled lovingly at her boyfriend.

"Whoa, Lucy," Natsu blushed, rubbing his neck. "Lay off the whip. There's gotta be a less painful way to get my attention."

"Merry Christmas, Salamander," Lucy purred. "It's good to be back with Ken, safe and sound. Thanks to you, I've returned to the life I used to have… and with the man I love."

"Aw, it wasn't just me. It's you and Gray," Natsu chuckled. " _We_ got our lives back. _We_ reunited with Ken and all our friends." Caressing Lucy's cheek, he smiled warmly, "And yeah. I'm back with the girl of my dreams. Here we are, the two of us, back on the room."

"Natsu…" Lucy sighed passionately, caressing Natsu's cheek with a touch of her own. She then pointed upwards, and the salmon-haired toy followed her finger.

"Hey, isn't that a mistletoe?" Natsu wondered.

"Mm-hmm!" Lucy tackled Natsu to the ground, covering him with continuous kisses. The pull-string Dragon Slayer couldn't help but laugh uncontrollably at the tickling assault of kisses from his blonde-haired toy girlfriend. An amused Mirajane, Lisanna, and Elfman were perched above a shelf, holding a sprig of mistletoe.

Lisanna sighed happily, "Don't you just love happy endings?"

Elfman stated, "Happy endings are manly!"

Mirajane smiled, "Natsu's more happier than he's ever been. He's reunited with Lucy."

Lisanna wondered, "Hey, I wonder what happened with Gajeel?"

Elfman assured with a sly smirk, "Oh, don't worry, Lis. Erza's got it covered."

In a different corner of the room, Gajeel was dressed in a doll's maid outfit, holding a toy duster in his hand. He argued, "Aw, come on! I said I was sorry! Give me a chance!"

Erza crossed her arms and frowned, "Gajeel, you accused Natsu of a terrible crime he didn't commit, you left him and Lucy stranded in Takeshi's house, and you threw him out the truck when he's asking us for help! As punishment, you're going to clean up every speck of dust in the room for the rest of your life!"

Gajeel protested, "Come on, Erza! I'm sorry! I really am! I've changed! That makes everything better, right?!"

"Enough!" Erza snapped. "Now clean up the dust in the trunk, unless you want another Heaven's Wheel sword to the face! And don't even think about resting! Exercise is good for you!"

Gajeel groaned in irritation, rubbing his back, "Aww, man. My parts are killin' me."

Meanwhile, the rest of the toys congregated below the monitor. Wendy suggested to her fellow toys, "Maybe Ken will get another magical girl toy, like Sailor Moon. That way, I can be _Sailor Marvelous!_ " They laughed at the thought of Wendy's idea.

"Quiet, everyone! Quiet!" Gray called from the bed.

" _Maka's first present is…_ " Mest announced from the baby monitor. " _A Carla Exceed toy! Repeat, a Carla Exceed toy!_ "

Happy could hardly dare to believe it, his mouth agape with surprise. His dream of having a girlfriend just like Natsu finally came true. Everyone turned to congratulate him with cheers and rounds of applause. Cana commented, "Way to go, furball."

Laki smiled, "We're so happy for you!"

Kinana added, "Yeah, congrats, Happy."

"Gee, I better make myself presentable!" Happy said jovially, brushing the top of his head. He was eager to meet his future girlfriend. Natsu climbed up to the bed with a silly look on his lipstick-covered face, joining Gray.

" _Come in, Phoenix Priestess. Ken is now opening his first present,_ " Mest's voice reported. Just then, static came over the baby monitor. Gray banged the side of the monitor, but nothing came through.

"Gray. Gray Fullbuster, you're not worried, are you?" Natsu asked with a sly grin. After Ken's birthday and discovering the unwrapping, he assumed that Gray would worry of any new arrivals.

" _I can't quite make out…_ " Mest's report was interrupted by static again. " _…large box. It's… It's… It's…_ "

"Me? No!" Gray shook his head. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Nuh-uh." He tried to look confident, but Natsu wasn't buying it for a second. "Are you?"

Natsu laughed playfully, "Come on, Snowman. What could Ken possible get that is _worse_ than you?"

Gray just grinned. Natsu may have been rough around the edges, but the space toy knew him better than that. They were friends now. Looking back on it, he had to admit that he had been acting pretty crazy the first time he showed up. And even if he's just a toy, he _was_ still Gray Fullbuster, and he wasn't about to give up his rebellious attitude and boundless courage. Natsu was right. Nothing could be worse than him. Well, almost…

"Oh, what is it? What is it?" Ken's voice called over the radio. He was immediately answered by the sound of barking. "Wow, a puppy!"

Natsu and Gray just stared at each other and grinned sheepishly. Somehow, they expected that.

 **THE END**


	17. Credits and Ending Song

**Main Cast  
** _Tetsuya Kakihara/Todd Haberkorn as Natsu Dragneel  
Yuichi Nakamura/Newton Pittman as Gray Fullbuster  
Aya Hirano/Cherami Leigh as Lucy Heartfilia  
Wataru Harano/David Wald as Gajeel Redfox  
Rie Kugimiya/Tia Ballard as Happy  
Sayaka Ohara/Colleen Clinkenbeard as Erza Scarlet  
Satomi Satō/Brittney Karbowski as Wendy Marvell  
Ryōko Ono/Monica Rial as Mirajane Strauss  
Romi Park/John Morris as Ken Hirugashi  
Eri Kitamura/Erik von Detten as Takeshi Sakamoto  
Megumi Harano/Laurie Metcalf as Mrs. Hirugashi  
Shūhei Sakaguchi/Alex Organ as Mest Gryder  
Misato Fukuen/Sarah Freeman as Asuka Sakamoto  
Eri Kitamura/Jamie Marchi as Cana Alberona  
Hiroki Yasumoto/Christopher Sabat as Elfman Strauss  
Harumi Sakurai/Carrie Savage as Lisanna Strauss  
Ikumi Hayama/Apphia Yu as Laki Olietta  
Natsue Sasamoto/Lara Woodhull as Kinana  
Yūichi Iguchi/Sonny Strait as Reedus Jonah  
Daisuke Kageura/Gregory Lush as Warren Rocko  
Mariya Ise/Kristi Kang as Levy McGarden  
Katsuyuki Konishi/Patrick Seitz as Laxus Dreyar  
Yoshimitsu Shimoyama/Austin Tindle as Alzack Connell  
Eiji Sekiguchi/Charlie Campbell as Wakabe Mine  
Yukiyo Fujii/Heather Walker as Gemi  
Kanami Satō/Michelle Rojas as Mini  
Saori Gato/Monica Rial as Nikora (Plue)  
with Mika Kanai/Tiffany Grant as Momon  
and Aya Endō/Jessica Calvello as Éclair_

 **Ending Song  
** **You've Got a Friend in Mine  
** Sung by Randy Newman and James Taylor

 _You've got a friend in me  
You've got a friend in me  
When the road looks rough ahead  
And you're miles and miles  
From your nice warm bed  
You just remember what your old pal said  
Boy, you've got a friend in me  
Yeah, you've got a friend in me_

 _You've got a friend in me  
You've got a friend in me  
If you've got troubles, I've got 'em too  
There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you  
We stick together and can see it through  
Cause you've got a friend in me  
You've got a friend in me_

 _Some other folks might be  
A little bit smarter than I am  
Bigger and stronger too  
Maybe  
But none of them will ever love you the way I do  
It's me and you boy_

 _And as the years go by  
Our friendship will never die  
You're gonna see it's our destiny  
You've got a friend in me  
Yeah, you've got a friend in me  
You've got a friend in me_

* * *

 **Author's Note:  
** _There it is, the ending to the first of Fairy Tail's Pixar Parody Series, "Fairy Tail's Toy Story!" Hot the dog, that sure was somethin'! Whenever I set my eyes on something, I just write it with a little paper called imagination! Not to mention the twist, when I added the part when Takeshi was recommended by his parents to have therapy! Twists lead to excitement. Excitement leads to passion. Passion leads to a path to true victory!_

 _But seriously, thank you for enjoying the end of the story. Please stay tuned for more upcoming parodies. What do you want to see me make next time? Perhaps you want a sequel to the already-successful story,_ _ **Fairy Tail's Toy Story 2?**_ _A Bug's Life? Finding Nemo? Monsters, Inc.? Let me know!_

 _If you wish for more Fairy Tail-related parodies, please check out my Disney Parody Series. Enjoy them for as much as you like. Read, review, and suggest!_

 _This is TheSavageMan100, signing out. Stay tuned for more!_


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